ABSTRACT
Harvesting time and type of accession of forage legumes are important factors to determine their performance as companion crops for cereals. The objective of this multi-year field trial was to evaluate different harvesting times of forage cluster bean accessions sown as companion crops with forage sorghum under irrigated conditions. Treatments included two accessions (BR-90 and BR-99) and four harvesting times (pre-flowering, complete flowering, 50 and 100% pod formation). The BR-99 accession harvested at 100% pod formation had greater performance with respect to green forage yield (20.42 t·ha-1) and dry matter biomass (5.80 t·ha-1) and it was statistically at par within the same accession harvested at 50% pod formation. The highest quality forage with the maximum crude protein and ether extractable fat and lowest crude fiber was recorded by BR-99 harvested at 50% pod formation, while BR-90 did not perform at par at all harvesting times. Harvesting of BR-99 at 100% pod formation also resulted in the highest net income along with the benefit-cost ratio. The harvesting of BR-99 at 50 and 100% pod formation resulted in non-significant differences of forage yields and economic returns, however, the quality of cluster bean forage deteriorated at 100% pod formation thus harvesting at 50% pod formation would be preferred.
Key words
Animal nutrition; Cyamopsis tetragonoloba Taub; forage legumes; strip-intercropping; Sorghum bicolor L.
