1. Optimization of maize-vegetable intercrops in the Guinea and Sudan savanna agro-ecological zones of Ghana
Targeted journal: Experimental Agriculture
Africa RISING West Africa Phase I Legacy Writeshop
12-13 December, 2016
Bamako, Mali
J B Tignegre1, A Tenkouano1, Alpha S. Traoré1, L Asamoah2, AR Nurrideen2, S Eliasu2, R Boateng2, D Naab2, M Asante2
1AVRDC – The World vegetable Center
2International Institute for Tropical Agriculture
Corresponding author

2. Introduction and objective
Vegetable and cereal intercropping is widely practiced in Northern Ghana in the humid season. Intercropping contribute to crop diversification and improvement of nutrition by availing high nutritious vegetable consumption
It is also source of income and addresses vegetable shortages in the humid season
Hypothesis: production can increase through adoptions of optimum vegetable and maize intercrops with positive synergistic interactions
Objective: determine an optimum vegetable cropping system suitable for regions of northern Ghana

3. Methodology
Investigations were initiated on humid season vegetable- maize intercropping trials for eight combinations of spatial planting arrangements and densities;
Field layout was a RCBD with 8 treatments.
Each trial had 3 replicates
Data were collected for veg. fruit & maize grain weights
Data analysis: GLM ANOVA, with Genstat 17th version was used
LER was used to determine optimum vegetable-Maize system
LER = [Maize intercropped * (Maize Pure stand) -1] + [Vegetable Intercropped * (Vegetable Pure stand)-1].

4. Main Results and Discussion
Fig. 1-3
Planting arrangements in the maize- vegetable intercrops with LER for biological yields ≥ 1 (threshold) were optimum and beneficial for farmers

5. Main Results and Discussion
Fig. 1-5.
Planting arrangements in the maize-vegetable intercrops with LER for biological yields ≥ 1 (threshold) were optimum and beneficial for farmers

6. Conclusion
Recommendations on optimized vegetable intercropping systems for UER & NR:
(i) 1:1 Okra:maize at planting density of 196,000 plts.ha ,000 plts.ha-1 (ii
(ii) 1:1 African eggplant:maize at planting density of 296,000 plts.ha ,000 plts.ha-1, or
1:2 African eggplant:maize at planting density 296,000 plts.ha ,000 plts.ha-1
(iii) 1:2 Roselle:maize at planting density 296,000 plts.ha ,000 plts.ha-1
(iv) In UER,
1:1 Pepper:maize at planting density of 296,000 plts.ha ,000 plts.ha-1, or
1:2 Pepper:maize at planting density of 296,000 plts.ha ,000 plts.ha-1
(v) In NR, contrasting results for tomato over 2 years make it difficult to recommend any system