RA 00015.pdf - OAR@ICRISAT

Table 70. Total land area and percentage net
cropped area in the Vertisol watershed
units at ICRISAT Center.
Total Net cropped
Watershed area area
(ha) (%)
BW1 3.41 95
BW2 3.96 87
B W 3 A 5.21 89
BW3B 2.15 92
B W 4 A 3.07 91
BW4B 2.48 87
BW4C 3.45 97
BW6A 1.67 86
BW6B 4.69 90
B W 6 C 2.66 79
B W 6 D 1.80 87
BW7A 3.74 84
BW7B 2.70 81
BW7C 2.54 81
B W 7 D 4.09 80
BW7E 0.89 78
B W 7 F 0.73 62
B W 8 A 2.37 93
sole sorghum plus ratoon-cropping systems were
grown. These double-cropping systems were
compared to traditional postrainy season single
cropping under different soil- and watermanagement
practices (Table 71). Each cropping
system was duplicated in each watershed unit
and the crop yields and rupee values given are
means of the two replicates. Yield and economic
data presented in Tables 71, 72, and 73 are from
nonirrigated areas.
On deep Vertisols, yields of the broad bed- and
furrow-system (BW1, 2, 3 A) were higher than
those in the adjacent flat-planted watersheds
(BW3 B, 4 B). The average gross returns of the
three bedded watersheds for the intercrop and
sequential crop systems were Rs 4920 and Rs
3680 per ha, respectively (Table 71A). These
values were Rs 710 and Rs 810 per ha higher than
the comparable flat-planted systems. BW7 A was
excluded from the comparisons because of poor
growth due to inadequate drainage in past years
(see footnote b., Table 71 A). In the sorghumbased
system 13 gross benefits were about the
same as in the flat-planted maize-based systems
(Table 71). As in past years, the most striking
contrast in production was that of the improved
double-cropping on beds versus traditional flatplanted
single cropping in the postrainy season.
The gross benefit of traditional postrainy season
sorghum was only Rs 950, or 19 percent of the
improved intercrop system (Table 71 A, C).
Another disadvantage of the postrainy season
single-cropping system is that clean cultivation is
practiced four or five times during the rainy
season, which leaves the soil unprotected and
subject to raindrop erosion during high-intensity
storms (see page 182).
The yields and gross monetary values of the
maize/pigeonpea intercrop on both the deep and
medium deep Vertisols were consistently much
greater than that of the maize-chickpea sequence
(Tables 71,72). This large difference in the 1976-
1977 season was due to (i) poor-quality Deccan
Hybrid 101 seed used in the sequential system,
(ii) poor germination of chickpea due to severe
drought in late September and October, and
(iii) unusually high prices of pigeonpea at harvest
time. In 1975-1976, the maize plus sequential
chickpea was a good combination with maize
and chickpea yields being about 50 and 100
percent higher, respectively, than in 1976-1977.
On the medium deep Vertisols, average yields
and gross benefits in the bed-and-furrow watersheds
at the 0.6-percent slope (BW7 B, C) were
consistently better than those obtained under flat
planting. However, the magnitude of the differences
is less than on the deep Vertisols. Yields
and gross benefits in BW7 D (beds at a 1.0%
slope) were lower than those obtained with beds
at 0.6-percent slope or flat planting. Yield values
and gross benefits on the medium deep Vertisols
13 Although the sorghum-based systems compare relatively
favorably in 1976, this system was unsuccessful in the 3
previous years because of moist conditions at harvest time.
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