Intercropping Farming System and Farmers Income

Abstract

Agriculture cultivation systems and farmer's income are the crucial issues in many agriculture-based developing countries. Our previous study proved that the polyculture system positively affects land productivity and land-use efficiency. This research investigated the relationship between intercropping farming systems and farmer's income. We hypothesized that the intercropping farming system increases farmer's income compared to monoculture. The farming income analysis was carried out using Microsoft Excel and STATA software. The results showed that the farmer's income derived from the intercropping farming system differs from monoculture. Based on the T-test, the intercropping farming system provided a higher income. Intercropping farming systems that have higher plant diversity, contributed to higher farmer income from different plant yields. Farmers that applied the intercropping system would harvest of 2-3 different plants from one cultivated land at the same time with regular planting distance. These indicated that the intercropping farming system reduces the risk of loss due to price fluctuations of products and the higher input costs during the production process.

Determinants of Compliance to Good Agricultural Practices among Cocoa Farmers in Ondo State, Nigeria

“…Parikhani et al (2015) also identified economic factors as important to compliance to GAP. Other authors have also linked GAP to improved income and hence livelihood of smallholders (Jumiyati et al, 2018;Arsyad et al, 2020). The study however disagrees with Olutegbe and Samuel (2020) on the importance of considering relative economic advantage in making choices.…”

“…The result also shows that on the average, the environmental benefit was rated moderate by cocoa farmers. Arsyad et al (2020) also argues that modern agriculture practices have tended to ignore ecological principles thus contributing to unstable sustainable agro-ecosystems. In the same vein, health benefit perceived most by farmers were reduced respiratory problems in humans (mean = 2.25), reduced frequency of disease attack (mean = 2.24) and strong and agile body (mean = 2.21).…”

“…In another study, Arsyad et al (2020) also averred that the agricultural practice (such as monoculture) is vulnerable to various environmental constraints and this has negative implications for farmers productivity and income. In contrast, the demand for cocoa, which is largely determined by external factors, has been projected to be on the rise.…”

Maize legume intercropping systems in southern Mexico: A review of benefits and challenges

“…Intercropping can also increase farms benefits due to the large diversity of crops that are mostly grown simultaneously. ARSYAD et al (2020) reported that intercropping farming systems with higher crop diversity greatly increased farmer income. In the southern region of Mexico, little is known about the effect of maize-legume intercropping system on farm income and/or food security; however, a few scientific studies showed that conservation practices can help the small farms confront and adapt to changes and turn the system more resilient.…”

Potential of various trap crops for the control of Bemisia tabaci on chilli pepper

“…Management of habitat using the intercropping system can reduce the level of B. tabaci attacks (Zhang et al, 2020) and the spread of the virus brought by whitefly (Hooks & Fereres, 2006). In general, pest attacks in monocultural planting systems tend to be higher than in the intercropping system (Arsyad et al, 2020;Fattah et al, 2020). Besides that, the ability of B. tabaci to produce eggs (fecundity) (Di et al, 2018) and its survival rate (Zhang et al, 2014) tend to be higher on monocultural condition than the intercropping system.…”