07/02/2026
I realised there are some important principles of intercropping that many agro-investors/farmers/farm manager dont really understand & are not putting into consideration before deciding to intercrop.
I wrote this 2023.... on what you need to understand about intercropping.
I will make it very concise.
Inter-croping simply mean growing more than one crops on a particular section of farmland at a particular period of time.
There are various methods of Intercropping. We have the inter row, mixed, relay, strip, multi tier, guard, alley, trap, repellant, etc.
Let's briefly analyse those method...
For row method: it's simply means, planting more than one crops on one field but aligned closely on rows. For example planting maize & beans or maize and groundnut on same field but assuming we have 21 rows of beds, maize will be planted on the old number beds I.e 1, 3, 5 to 21, why beans will be planted on the even number beds i.e bed 2, 4, 6 to 20. In the system the crops standard spacing will be maintained.
Mixed method: this is simply implies growing more than one crops on same field at the same time & are mixed together without any particular pattern. This is common in Africa and it is common by small scale farmers, For instance some farmers will grow maize, cassava & melon on same field at the same period of time. Some will even plant potato on heaps & also plant okra & tomato in same heap. They make heaps & plant potato in it the heap & then plant okra & tomato opposite sides of the heaps.
Relay method: this is the method practice by my grand pa. Most farmers in my village practice this as well. This is the most complicated method of intercropping, thou I see this as the best for local farmer. In the method, the farmer cultivate more than one crops on same farmland. The crops are not planted same time, the planting schedule is done in such a way that whenever the harvesting period of those on the field are close another crop(s) is/are used to planted, so that when those crops are harvested the newly introduce crops replaced them. Will talk more about this later.
Strip method: this is like row inter cropping but the row cover by each crops are wider.. For example, like 6m wide of maize, then plant soybeans covering like 6m wide also, then wheat too covering like 6m wide, then walk path and repeat like that, maize, soybeans, wheat, walk path, maize, soybeans, wheat like that.
Alley method: this is Intercropping tree crops with other plants that are not tree crops like water melon, melon, potatoes, cabbage, lettuce intercropped in tree crop plantation.
Repellant method: this involved planting some crops to act as repellant for pests that use to attract another crops. This is biological ways of controlling tests on field. For instance intercroping tomato farm with marigold plant, chives, onion etc.
why intercropping?
Most farmers/agro-investors mainly think of intercropping because they want to make more money on a farmland maybe because land is expensive & with the thought that they can spend the cost to manage one crop on more and end up making more return.
Imagine some asking if he can intercept okra with cucumber, I was like please what is your aim? What do you want to achieve?. Okra that carries nematodes to the field & cucumber will not do well on land invaded by nematodes..
It's sound somehow, how farmers decide to intercrop with out putting into consideration principles guiding intercroping.
When you are planning on making use of that farmland judiciously, ensure your;
(a) farm management structure can handle the crops you want to intercop with each other,
(b) ensure the crops you are inter cropping match ecologically, plant families, architecture (height), time of maturing, growth habits (sunlight and water needs in particular) root formation, disease & pests attacks).
When intercropping follow the rule guideline below:
Combine high growing and wide growing species.
Match shallow-rooted plants with deep-rooted ones.
Select species with similar water needs (e.g. cabbage demanding abundant irrigation must not grow together with companions requiring scarce water supply).
Match plants that do not compete for sunlight (one should be able to develop in the shade of the other).
Avoid grouping crops of the same family to mitigate pest invasions. For this reason, you must not plant potatoes with eggplants or tomatoes; however, they go well with beetroots. On the contrary, combinations of different families in intercropping eliminate infestation. Thus, matches of solanaceous plants with corn reduce the movement of Colorado potato beetles
(host vs. non-host crops).
Mind possible disease outbreaks due to close interaction in intercropping. Note that pests not only damage crops physically by eating but bear viruses critical for specific vegetation.
Add culinary herbs for the repellant effect.
Plant legumes with non-legumes to improve soil fertility (to raise the concentration of nitrogen). E.g plant maize and beans/soybeans, groundnut etc.
Sow attractant intercropping species to lure pollinators.
Choose slow-growing and fast-growing cultures. In this case, when the latter are harvested, the first ones will have enough space to develop. Like intercropping maize with casava, when maize is harvested the cassava will have enough space to grow.
Consider allelopathic properties, which are among the main disadvantages of intercropping.
Select plants for physical support. Beans greatly wine on corn, planting walnut beside kolanut etc.
Inter-cropping plantain and cocoa together, the plantain will serve as shade for the young cocoa plants & also serve as source of income before the cocoa reach maturity period.
Inter-cropping tree crops of wider planting spacing & long maturity of 3 to 5 years of planting with annual/biennial crops that mature fast. For instance coconut, oil palm, cashew, field can be use to grow annual crops like maize, yam, potato, cocoyam, soya beans, ground nuts, cassava for their first 1 to 5 years before forming canopy. Also this can be done when they grow talk like 15 years after planting (except that of cashew).
Pineapple can be inter-cropped with pawpaw.
Pineapple can also be intercropped with tree crops but with the planting spacing for the tree crops will be a bit wider reducing the tree crops plant population to reduce how shady the plant will be in the future.
As a veggies farm, you can incorporate planting tree crops on that land you are using to cultivate veggies. As you are maintaining the veggies, you are also managing the trees, then after 5 years when the tree crops form canopy, you can move your veggies field to another portion.
*Please note that w**d management become more complicated when intercropping*
I remain your dear Farmercist Aniyikaye.
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