Investigating the Effect of Intercropping of Sesame, Mung Bean, and Cowpea on Crop Profitability Indices

In order to study the effect of planting pattern on yield and benefit indices of sesame, mung bean, and cowpea intercropping, an experiment was conducted on the Research Farm of Production Engineering and Plant Genetic Department at Shahid chamran University of Ahvaz in 2017. This experiment was conducted as a completely randomized block design with three replications. This treatments included different plant patterns in 15 levels: Sesame sole cropping, mung bean sole cropping, cowpea sole cropping, triple intercropping ratios: 1-2-2 (1mung bean, 2sesame, and 2cowpea), 2-1-2, 1-3-1, 2-2-1, 2-3-2 and dual intercropping ratios: 3sesame-3mung bean, 3sesame-3cowpea, 3mung bean-3cowpea, 2sesame-4cowpea, 2sesame-4mung bean, 4sesame-2cowpea, 4sesame-2mung bean. The results of this study showed that the higher total LER (1.56) was found at 3mung bean-3cowpea. In addition, based on the results of this research the intercropping planting patterns include 4sesame-2mung bean (1.21), 2mung bean-3sesame-2cowepea (1.19), 2sesame-4mung bean (1.18), and 2sesame-4cowpea (1.09) had total LER more than unity (1.0). Among the planting patterns, sesame had the highest aggressive degree (1.03), the highest relative crowding coefficient (4.64), and the highest relative intensity of competition (10.82) in the 2mung bean-3sesame-2cowepea, which indicate the superiority of sesame than two other studied plants in this planting pattern. Moreover, the results of this research showed that the two plant intercropping patterns of 3mung bean-3cowpea and 4sesame-2cowpea were significantly superior compared to the sole cropping and three plants intercropping patterns in terms of yield indices. In general, based on the results of this research, it was observed that the simultaneous intercropping of sesame with mung bean or cowpea as an example of sustainable system in agriculture that pursues goals such as creating ecological balance, more exploitation of resources, quantitative and qualitative increase in yield, and it was significantly superior to other cultivation patterns. This can be due to the positive effect of these plants together, especially in connection with the power of nitrogen fixation by legumes.