Mixed cropping effects on growth of wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) and chickpea (Cicer arietenum L.).

A pot experiment was conducted to study the effect of mixed cropping of wheat and chickpea on their growth and nodulation in chickpea. The plants were grown to maturity alone and in a mixture and data on different plant parameters collected after 2, 3, and 4 (maturity) months of seed sowing. When grown in mixture, wheat had an inhibitory effect on root proliferation, total biomass and grain yield of chickpea; the value of different parameters in mixture being one third of that determined when chickpea was grown as a sole crop. This inhibition was also reflected in the number of nodules per plant and was assumed to result at least partially from physiological malfunctioning of roots as reflected by a drastic and significant decrease (p = 0.05) in tissue water concentration. The inhibition intensified with time and severity of damage to chickpea roots maximized at maturity as suggested by a sharp decrease in root/shoot ratio. Interestingly, the weight of individual nodules was significantly better when chickpea was grown in mixture. Contrary to chickpea, biomass yield of wheat increased by >100% due to the companion crop. The improvement was observed in all the plant components except for 100-grain weight that showed a significant decrease (p = 0.05); harvest index and green-ness of flag leaf was not affected.