Inter-cropping technique can boost Pakistan agriculture

By Masood Sattar Khan
(Pakistan News & Features Services) 

Thanks to Pakistani students introducing Chinese inter-cropping technology has become a possibility and it can helpful in boosting the country’s agriculture and food sector. 

The two Pakistani students, Muhammad Ali Raza and Sajad Hussain from the Sichuan Agricultural University, China, with the support of Professor Yang Wenyu and other agricultural experts, have introduced China’s maize-soybean strip inter-cropping technology to accelerate the crop yield. 

Prof Yang Wenyu, has emphasized that the technology will help Pakistan to promote agriculture export and improve its food security. In Pakistan, so far, four demonstrations have been arranged separately in Bahawalpur, Chakwal, Islamabad and Layyah. 

The Chinese professor has reckoned that the technology will contribute to the socio-economic development of Pakistan and farmers are welcome to use this technology free of cost. As agricultural cooperation was an important part of CPEC second phase, the Chinese inter-cropping technology will further boost this cooperation.

“This technology can boost maize yield as well as create an additional soybean harvest to reduce dependence of Pakistan’s soybean imports and improve the country’s food security,” Prof Wenyu added. 

The application of maize-soybean strip inter-cropping technology in Pakistan has theoretical and practical basis. Firstly, Pakistan has a large population while the area of arable land is limited. It has the demand to develop inter-cropping to grow two crops together. Secondly, Pakistan enjoys ample sunlight, which is a favorable natural condition for soybean’s growth. 

Moreover, in the inter-cropping fields, maize can shade soybean to reduce high average temperature’s impact, and nitrogen fixation by soybean can promote maize’s growth in return. 

By using inter-cropping technology, the yield of maize can reach 10,500 kg per hectare with an additional 1,350 to 1,650 kg/ha soybean production in Pakistan’s irrigated areas. 

In rain-fed areas, the production of maize and soybean can rise to 6,000 kg/ha and 4,500 to 1,500 kg/ha respectively. At present, maize is grown on an area of about 1.3 million hectares in Pakistan. In this way, the nation’s maize yield can be guaranteed and greatly increased. 

More importantly, Pakistani farmers can harvest considerable soybean. It will definitely generate considerable economic benefit for Pakistani people. 

There were some reservations about the technology’s performance because many local farmers hadn’t seen this kind of farming model before. 

“As long as they follow the required technical instructions to plant the two crops, this technology is sure to work out. Actually many countries are researching into inter-cropping. But across the globe our maize-soybean strip inter-cropping may be the only mature inter-cropping,” the Chinese expert explained. 

It should be noted that after 18 years of research and development, Prof Yang Wenyu’s maize-soybean strip inter-cropping technology was included in China’s No. 1 Central Document of top-priority by CPC Central Committee and the State Council of the People’s Republic of China to be promoted vigorously and widely in more regions of China. Besides Pakistan, it also has been introduced to Africa and Europe such as Ghana and Sweden.