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Effects of Legumes-Cassava Intercropping on Cassava

Forage and Biomass Production
a b
Khieu Borin & B. E. Frankow-Lindberg
a
Centre for Livestock and Agriculture Development, CelAgrid UTA-Cambodia, Kandal Village,
Rolous Commune , Kandal Stung District, Kandal Province, P.O. Box 2423, Phnom Penh 3,
Cambodia
b
Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences, Department of Ecology and Crop Production
Science , P.O. Box 7043, SE-750 07, Uppsala, Sweden
Published online: 07 Oct 2008.
To cite this article: Khieu Borin & B. E. Frankow-Lindberg (2005) Effects of Legumes-Cassava Intercropping on Cassava Forage
and Biomass Production, Journal of Sustainable Agriculture, 27:2, 139-151, DOI: 10.1300/J064v27n02_09
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Effects of Legumes-Cassava
Intercropping on Cassava Forage
and Biomass Production
Khieu Borin
Downloaded by [University of California Davis] at 10:43 04 November 2014
B. E. Frankow-Lindberg
ABSTRACT. A sweet short-term variety of cassava was harvested for

forage every 60 days during 18 months on a sandy loam soil near Phnom
Penh in Cambodia. Treatments were cassava intercropped with Des-
manthus virgatus (C + Dv) or Gliricidia sepium (C + Gs), and cassava
alone (C) was the control. The harvested biomass was weighed and sam-
ples for the determination of dry matter (DM), nitrogen (N), crude pro-
tein (CP), and leaf proportion were taken. Soil fertility was assessed by a
‘biological test’ with maize grown in soil samples from the cassava plots
and soil samples were also analyzed for the determination of chemical
composition at the beginning and the end of the experiment. Inter-
cropping did not affect cassava DM and CP yields but total DM and CP
yields were increased by 43% and 39% in D. virgatus and G. sepium
intercrops, respectively. Intercropping increased leaf proportion in the
cassava DM. The total CP yield ranged from 0.1 to 0.5, from 0.4 to 0.6
and from 0.3 to 0.6 tons harvest occasion⫺1 in treatments C, C + Dv, and
Khieu Borin is affiliated with the Centre for Livestock and Agriculture Develop-
ment, CelAgrid UTA-Cambodia, Kandal Village, Rolous Commune, Kandal Stung
District, Kandal Province, P.O. Box 2423, Phnom Penh 3, Cambodia.
B. E. Frankow-Lindberg is affiliated with the Swedish University of Agricultural
Sciences, Department of Ecology and Crop Production Science, P.O. Box 7043,
SE-750 07 Uppsala, Sweden.
Address correspondence to: B. E. Frankow-Lindberg at the above address (E-mail:
Bodil.Frankow-Lindberg@evp.slu.se).
The authors thank the Swedish International Development Agency (SIDA), Depart-
ment for Research Cooperation (SAREC) for the financial support of the present study
through the Mekong Agricultural Research Network (MEKARN) programme, and the
University of Tropical Agriculture for allowing them the use of their research facilities.
Journal of Sustainable Agriculture, Vol. 27(2) 2005
Available online at http://www.haworthpress.com/web/JSA
 2005 by The Haworth Press, Inc. All rights reserved.
doi:10.1300/J064v27n02_09 139
140 JOURNAL OF SUSTAINABLE AGRICULTURE
C + Gs, respectively. The CP content ranged from 21.1-29.3% and 8.3-

10.8% in the cassava leaf and stems plus petioles, respectively, while the
CP contents in D. virgatus and G. sepium were 14.8% and 15.6%, re-
spectively. It was estimated that D. virgatus and G. sepium fixed 1/3
and 1/2 of the N amounts removed in the cassava forage, respectively.
In this experiment all biomass produced was removed from the plots and
soil fertility declined. [Article copies available for a fee from The Haworth
Document Delivery Service: 1-800-HAWORTH. E-mail address: <docdelivery@
haworthpress.com> Website: <http://www.HaworthPress.com>  2005 by The
Haworth Press, Inc. All rights reserved.]
KEYWORDS. Biomass production, cassava forage, Desmanthus vir-

gatus, Gliricidia sepium, intercropping, Manihot esculenta, soil fertility
INTRODUCTION
It is well known that higher yields can be achieved even with non-im-
proved cultivars through better soil and fertilizer management and culti-
vation practices. Low soil fertility is at present the major constraint for
increased yields of crops grown in most developing countries. The poor
soil fertility is due to the intensive use of land, mono-cropping systems,
and the imbalance of mineral nutrient output through the crops and the
input to the soil. Traditional farming systems generally rely on natural
recycling of nutrients to maintain soil fertility, as well as, the productiv-
ity of crops. Nowadays, due to the intensive use of land and the shorten-
ing of the fallow period, nutrient management must be improved and
should either be through the direct application of organic or inorganic
fertilizers, or through intercropping systems. One strategy to increase
the nitrogen (N) supply in forage production is the introduction of N fix-
ing forage legumes (Thomas, 1992; Peoples et al., 1995) into the crop-
ping system. Cassava grown as a forage crop removes large amounts of
nitrogen (Putthacharoen et al., 1998). There are some reports on cassava
intercropped with pulses or grain legumes, e.g., cowpea (Vigna ungui-
culata) and peanut (Arachis hypogaea) (Mason et al., 1986a;1986b),
and pigeonpea (Cajanus cajan) and soybean (Glycine max) (e.g., Cen-
pukdee and Fukai, 1992a; 199b). The intercropping generally improved
land use efficiency, while cassava yields were decreased or remained
unaffected. In these experiments, cassava was grown for tuber produc-
tion. However, very few reports exist on cassava intercropped with
woody legume species for forage production. In a study in Vietnam,
Research, Reviews, Practices, Policy and Technology 141
intercropping cassava grown for forage with Flemingia macrophylla re-

sulted in a yield increase of the association of 35% compared with a cas-
sava monocrop, which was entirely due to the yield of the legume
(Nguyen et al., 2003). Two other species of potential interest are
Gliricidia sepium and Desmanthus virgatus. G. sepium is a small to me-
dium-sized tree and D. virgatus is a shrub; they both grow well on many
soil types and are tolerant of a low pH in the soil. Both species have been
introduced in Cambodia, and are well adapted to the climate. Improved
varieties exist and have recently been introduced in the country.

The leaf is the part of the cassava plant that has a potential as a protein
feed for monogastric animals. It has a higher concentrations of most es-
sential amino acids as compared with soybean meal, but is deficient in
the sulphur-containing amino acids (Eggum, 1970), and the high levels
of fiber and cyanogenic glycosides may limit its use (Ravindran, 1993).
D. virgatus is characterized by a high crude protein (CP) content and a
high dry matter (DM) yield in combination with no antinutritional fac-
tors and can be fed to mongastric animals without any harmful effects
(Gutteridge, 1994). There are currently no data on G. sepium as a feed to
monogastric animals but supplementing guinea grass hay with gliricidia
foliage increased DM intake and improved nitrogen digestibility in
goats (Ash, 1990).
The aim of the present experiment was (i) to investigate the effect of
intercropping cassava with G. sepium and D. virgatus on cassava fo-
liage, total biomass and N yields, (ii) to determine the cassava leaf pro-
portion in the consecutive harvests during a cultivation period of 18
months, and (iii) to assess the effect of legume intercropping on soil
quality during and after the experimental period.
MATERIALS AND METHODS
The experiment was conducted from February 2001 to August 2002,

at the Ecological Farm of the University of Tropical Agriculture near
Phnom Penh (11.6°N, 104.8°E), in Cambodia. The climate is tropical
monsoonal, with two seasons: a dry season (November-April) and a
rainy season (May-October).
The experiment was established on 440 m2, of which 270 m2 were
used for experimental plots and 170 m2 served as borders between plots
and as paths for access. The soil is a sandy loam classified as Sretayen
Kampong Speu Province (National Soil Classification) and consists of
clay (12.9%), fine silt (10.0%), coarse silt (10.7%), fine sand (27.3%)
and coarse sand (38.3%). It was of moderate fertility with an average

pH of 7.2 (6.2-8.0). The experimental area had previously been culti-
vated with cassava in association with Sesbania rostrata and Flemingia
macrophylla.
The experiment included three treatments; cassava alone (C), cas-
sava-D. virgatus (C + Dv) and cassava-G. sepium (C + Gs). Each repli-
cated plot was 30 m2. The plots were separated by a 1 m wide row,
which also served as a path for access.
Plant Materials and Planting Methods
A short-term variety of cassava, which is commonly grown for root

production, was used in the experiment. The variety is characterised by
light green leaves and a red petiole and the roots are ready to be har-
vested after 6-8 months of growth. The variety is extensively cultivated
for root production in all agro-ecological regions of Cambodia.
The G. sepium seeds were obtained from Colombia and were pre-
germinated for three days before planting in plastic bags. These were
placed in a nursery until 4 weeks before transplanting into the experi-
mental plots. The seedlings were left to grow for 2 weeks on the experi-
mental plots (and reached a height of about 15 cm) before cassava was
planted. The D. virgatus seeds were obtained from Australia and were
directly sown in the experimental plots and were left to grow for 6
weeks (and reached a height of 10-12 cm) before cassava was planted.
The legumes were planted inbetween the 50 cm designated cassava
rows without any inoculation. The middle parts of cassava stems (20-25
cm long) were planted in a slanted position, two per drill, with a dis-
tance between drills of 50 cm. A total of 84 stems were planted in each
experimental plot of 30 m2.
The soil was prepared by hoeing to a depth of 25-30 cm and was
sun-dried for a week before the final tillage. The soil between the cas-
sava rows was hoed superficially a second time when the plants were
about nine months old. The soil of the experimental plots was elevated
which allowed excessive rain water to drain into a small irrigation canal
which was dug around each individual plot. The experiment was irri-
gated once daily during establishment (< 30 cm height), thereafter the
frequency of irrigation was regulated according to rainfall. Weeding
was done frequently by hand during the establishment period (three
months) and less frequently thereafter. No soil amendments were used
on the experimental plots.
The first harvest was done when the cassava had a height of about
150 cm (three months after planting) when all plant material 60 cm
above-ground was cut. At this time only cassava had grown above this
height. Thereafter, the plants were harvested every 60 days, and in these
harvests all species were present. At each harvest, all cassava plant ma-
terial was cut and weighed; after this it was manually partitioned into
leaves and stems plus petioles, which were dried and weighed sepa-
rately for the determination of the leaf proportion. Samples of about 300
g of each cassava component and each legume (all harvested material)

were ground to pass a 5 mm sieve and sub-sampled for the analysis of
DM, which was done according to the microwave radiation method
(Undersander et al., 1993), and N and CP (N ⫻ 6.25) contents using the
Kjeldahl method (AOAC, 1990). The legumes were only sampled 5
times during the experimental period.
Five soil samples were collected from 0-30 cm depth from each plot
and mixed together for the determination of the chemical composition
and pH. Soil samples were taken at the beginning, before planting of the
legumes, and at the end of the experiment. An indirect method, ‘a bio-
logical test,’ to assess soil fertility, using the same soil sampling method
as above, was also performed every six months, and in which maize was
grown in 1.5 kg soil samples for 30 days. Two whole plants were har-
vested and fresh weights (FW) of above-ground and below-ground
biomass were determined.
The experimental design was a complete randomized block design
(CRBD) with three replicates. The data was analyzed by analysis of
variance (ANOVA) using the General Linear Models (GLM) proce-
dures of Minitab version 13.31-program statistical software (Minitab,
2000).
RESULTS
Climatic Conditions
The average mean daily temperature was 25-30°C during the experi-
mental period. The lowest (25-26°C) temperature occurred in Novem-
ber-February and the highest (30-31°C) temperature in April-May.
Some irregular precipitation was recorded in February-April, while the
expected normal monsoon precipitation occurred from May to October.
The total rainfall during the experimental period was 2063 mm.
Dry Matter Yield
There was no effect of cassava-legume intercropping on total cassava

forage or leaf DM yields; however, the highest stems plus petiole DM
yields (P < 0.05) were recorded when cassava was planted alone. The
highest total biomass DM yield (P < 0.001) and leaf proportion (P <
0.05) were obtained when cassava-legume intercropping was practiced
(Table 1). A general pattern was observed in all plots, with a drop in bio-
mass yield in December, which was mainly due to cassava (P < 0.001;
Figure 1). Cassava leaf production was more even when it was inter-
cropped (P < 0.01; Figure 2a), while stem plus petiole production in all
plots followed the growth curve of pure cassava (P < 0.001; Figure 2b).
The total DM yield ranged from 0.5 to 2.8, from 1.9 to 3.4, and from 1.6
to 3.9 tonnes ha⫺1 harvest occasion⫺1 in C, C + Dv and C + Gs, respec-
tively. No harvest occasion or treatment effects on legume DM yield
were recorded.
Forage Chemical Composition
There was no effect of the legume on the CP content in the cassava

leaves or the cassava stems plus petioles (Table 2). The CP content of D.
virgatus and G. sepium ranged from 13.4-16.6 and 13.1-17.9%, respec-
tively. The CP content of the cassava leaf decreased with time (P <
0.001), but this was not the case with the stem plus petiole CP content.
TABLE 1. The effect of legume and cassava association on total biomass and
total cassava forage, cassava leaf, stem plus petiole yields (t DM ha⫺1 18
months⫺1) and average cassava leaf proportion of the total DM (%), n = 3. For
abbreviations see Materials and Methods.
Treatment Significance
C C + Dv C + Gs SE
Total biomass 18.0 25.8 25.0 1.40 ***
Total cassava forage# 18.0 14.7 17.4 1.24 ns
Leaf 8.3 8.0 8.9 0.61 ns
Stem plus petiole 8.6 6.1 7.8 0.63 *
Leaf proportion 49.4 56.7 52.0 2.05 *
ns, not significant, *P < 0.05, ***P < 0.001, # the discrepancy between total cassava forage and leaf + stem
plus petioles indicates that some plant material was lost while sorting it
FIGURE 1. Dry matter yield (t DM ha⫺1) at each individual harvest occasion,

(a) from total biomass and (b) from cassava only (leaf and stem plus petiole).
Bars represent the standard error of the mean.
Total biomass yield (t DM ha⫺1)

C C + Dv C + Gs
5.0 a)
4.5
4.0
3.5
3.0
2.5
2.0
1.5
1.0
0.5
0.0
Cassava forage yield (t DM ha⫺1)
5.0
b)
4.5
4.0
3.5
3.0
2.5
2.0
1.5
1.0
0.5
0.0
Apr-01
Jun-01
Aug-01
Oct-01
Dec-01
Feb-02
Apr-02
Jun-02
Aug-02
Harvest occasion
Crude Protein Yield
The greatest total CP yield was obtained from the cassava-legume

intercropping (P < 0.001), while there was no effect of intercropping on
either cassava forage, cassava leaf or cassava stem plus petiole total CP
yields (Table 3). There was a significant harvest occasion effect on total
CP yield (P < 0.01; Figure 3a), and on cassava leaves CP yield (P <
0.001; Figure 3b). The total CP yield ranged from 0.1 to 0.5, from 0.4 to
0.6 and from 0.3 to 0.6 tonnes harvest occasion⫺1 in treatments C, C + Dv,
and C + Gs, respectively.
FIGURE 2. Dry matter yield (t DM ha⫺1) of cassava components at each indi-

vidual harvest occasion, (a) leaves and (b) stem + petiole. Bars represent the
standard error of the mean.
C C + Dv C + Gs
Cassava leaves (t DM ha⫺1)

1.8 a)
1.6
1.4
1.2
1.0
0.8
0.6
0.4
0.2
0.0
Stem plus petiole (t DM ha⫺1)
1.8 b)
1.6
1.4
1.2
1.0
0.8
0.6
0.4
0.2
0.0
Apr-01
Jun-01
Aug-01
Oct-01
Dec-01
Feb-02
Apr-02
Jun-02
Aug-02
Harvest occasion
Soil Fertility
Biological Test
Maize biomass production was unaffected by the treatments, but the

root/shoot ratio was significantly lower in maize grown in soils from the
intercropped plots (P < 0.01).
Chemical Composition of the Soil
There was a significant increase in carbon, organic matter and Mg (P <

0.01) contents and also the C/N ratio and pH from the beginning until
TABLE 2. Crude protein content (% of DM) in cassava leaf, stems plus petioles
(S + P).
Cassava leaf Cassava stem plus petiole

Treatment
C 23.7 8.4
C + Dv 24.9 9.4
C + Gs 24.1 9.6
SE 0.85 0.50
Significance level ns ns
Harvest occasion (average of the three treatments)
April 2001 29.3 10.8
June 2001 25.9 10.0
August 2001 27.0 8.3
October 2001 25.6 10.2
December 2001 22.0 9.3
February 2002 23.1 8.3
April 2002 22.1 8.5
June 2002 21.1 8.3
August 2002 22.1 8.4
SE 1.47 0.87
Significance level *** ns
ns, not significant, ***P < 0.001
the end of the experiment, while N (P < 0.05), Ca and K (P < 0.001) con-
tents were reduced. All these changes were general and not due to the
different treatments.
DISCUSSION
The results show that cassava-legume intercropping increased total

biomass DM yield, while cassava forage DM yield was unaffected by
intercropping. This is in contrast to the study by Nguyen et al. (2003) in
which the forage yield of cassava was reduced by 24% when inter-
cropped with F. macrophylla as compared with a cassava mono-crop.
We did not record any significant overall effect of the two different le-
gumes on cassava forage production, but as can be seen in Figure 1, D.
virgatus appears to be more competitive of the two in the long run
TABLE 3. The effect of cassava and legume association on total biomass, cas-
sava forage and cassava stems plus petioles CP yields (t ha⫺1 18 months⫺1),
n = 3.
Treatment
C C + Dv C + Gs SE Significance level
Total biomass 2.8 4.4 4.1 0.25 ***
Cassava forage# 2.8 2.7 2.9 0.24 ns
Cassava leaf 2.0 2.1 2.2 0.18 ns

Cassava stem plus petiole 0.7 0.6 0.7 0.07 ns
ns, not significant, ***P < 0.001, # the discrepancy between total cassava forage and leaf + stem plus peti-
oles indicates that some plant material was lost while sorting it
(Schroth and Lehmann, 1995). There was a cyclical pattern of total for-
age DM accumulation with a pronounced dip in production between
October and February (the coolest and driest period of the year), which
was most clearly expressed in the cassava mono-crop. Cassava requires
high air temperatures for optimal leaf development (El-sharkawy et al.,
1992), while the legumes used in this study apparently were less sensi-
tive to variations in the temperature. When cassava yield declined, the
yield of the legumes increased and this increase was maintained until
the end of the experiment. This was also the case with F. macrophylla in
the study by Nguyen et al. (2003). The legumes were thus slow to estab-
lish, but once they started to grow their growth performance was rather
even through the seasons.
The cassava leaf CP content was not affected by treatment and was
on average 24%; a lower value (16.7%) was reported by Nguyen et al.
(2003) with cassava intercropped with F. macrophylla. The CP content
declined with time, which is in contrast to another study (unpublished
results). The cassava leaf proportion was, however, similar to a study
(unpublished data) where effluents from a biodigester were used to fer-
tilize the crop.
All crops removed large quantities of N, K and Ca which is consistent
with what other authors have reported (Putthacharoen et al., 1998; Tsay
et al., 1989; Olasantan et al., 1996). The legumes have been shown to fix
at least 60% of their N requirement from the atmosphere (Nygren et al.,
2000; Peoples et al., 1995). Using this figure it can be calculated that D.
virgatus and G. sepium contributed a total of 128 and 185 kg N ha⫺1 for
the total experimental period, respectively. This is 19.5% and 26.3% of
the N removed from the intercropped plots with D. virgatus and G.
sepium, respectively. Had the legume biomass not been removed from
FIGURE 3. Crude protein yield (t ha⫺1) at each harvest occasion (a) from total
biomass and (b) from cassava only (leaf and stem plus petiole). Bars represent
the standard error of the mean.
0.8 C C+Dv C+Gs

a)
0.7
Total CP yield (t ha⫺1)
0.6
0.5
0.4
0.3
0.2
0.1
0
0.8
b)
Cassava CP yield (t ha⫺1)
0.7
0.6
0.5
0.4
0.3
0.2
0.1
0
Apr-01
Jun-01
Aug-01
Oct-01
Dec-01
Feb-02
Apr-02
Jun-02
Aug-02
Harvest occasion
the plots the N amounts fixed could have contributed 1/3 (D. virgatus)
to 1/2 (G. sepium) of the N need of cassava. It is obvious from the bio-
logical test with maize that very little of the N fixed by the legumes re-
mained in the plots, so in order to improve N supply to cassava forage
by intercropping, some of the harvested legume biomass must be left on
the plots. However, the amount that was assumed to have been fixed in
this study was not sufficient to fully meet the N requirement of cassava,
and additional fertilizer should be applied if soil fertility is to be main-
tained, and particular attention should be paid to K and Ca, which are
also removed in large quantities. Another option as regards N supply to
cassava could be to increase the area of the legume relative to cassava
and use the legume biomass as a mulch.
CONCLUSION
The intercropping of cassava-legume with either D. virgatus or G.

sepium did not affect cassava forage yield but greatly increased total
biomass yield. The legumes grew slowly in the first year compared with
cassava but their growth rates improved in the second year. The growth
of cassava was more even between seasons when intercropped. The
intercrops did not supply any N when their biomass was removed, and
cannot be expected to meet the full N needs of a cassava forage crop,
even if the legume biomass is returned to the soil. Plots with cassava-le-
gume intercropping removed the highest amount of N from the soil.
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REVISED: 10/20/04
ACCEPTED: 11/12/04

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This article was downloaded by: [University of California Davis]

On: 04 November 2014, At: 10:43

Journal of Sustainable Agriculture

Effects of Legumes-Cassava Intercropping on Cassava

To link to this article: http://dx.doi.org/10.1300/J064v27n02_09

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ABSTRACT. A sweet short-term variety of cassava was harvested for

C + Gs, respectively. The CP content ranged from 21.1-29.3% and 8.3-

Haworth Press, Inc. All rights reserved.]

KEYWORDS. Biomass production, cassava forage, Desmanthus vir-

intercropping cassava grown for forage with Flemingia macrophylla re-

varieties exist and have recently been introduced in the country.

MATERIALS AND METHODS

The experiment was conducted from February 2001 to August 2002,

and coarse sand (38.3%). It was of moderate fertility with an average

Plant Materials and Planting Methods

A short-term variety of cassava, which is commonly grown for root

g of each cassava component and each legume (all harvested material)

Dry Matter Yield

There was no effect of cassava-legume intercropping on total cassava

Forage Chemical Composition

There was no effect of the legume on the CP content in the cassava

FIGURE 1. Dry matter yield (t DM ha⫺1) at each individual harvest occasion,

Total biomass yield (t DM ha⫺1)

Crude Protein Yield

The greatest total CP yield was obtained from the cassava-legume

FIGURE 2. Dry matter yield (t DM ha⫺1) of cassava components at each indi-

Cassava leaves (t DM ha⫺1)

Maize biomass production was unaffected by the treatments, but the

Chemical Composition of the Soil

There was a significant increase in carbon, organic matter and Mg (P <

Cassava leaf Cassava stem plus petiole

The results show that cassava-legume intercropping increased total

Cassava leaf 2.0 2.1 2.2 0.18 ns

0.8 C C+Dv C+Gs

The intercropping of cassava-legume with either D. virgatus or G.

(eds.) Proceedings, National Workshop-Seminar “Sustainable livestock production

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