PROFITABLE GARLIC AND COTTON INTERCROPPING
Intercropping garlic with cotton is a profitable technology that farmers should follow. The scheme does not significantly reduce the bulb size nor the quality of garlic. Instead, it assures farmers of a substantial increase in income from sale of seedcotton from the same land area in one cropping season. It does not even alter the cropping pattern nor displace the garlic as part of the cropping system.
Land Preparation
- Plow and harrow the field twice or thrice.
- You can also rotavate the field twice.
- Or, you may follow the minimum tillage method with rice stubbles cut close to the ground, or application of herbicides.
Herbicide Application
- Blanket-spray Glyphosate in weedy areas at 5-7 days before planting.
- Apply the herbicide to remaining weeds before planting.
Basal Fertilizer Application
- Before planting garlic, broadcast seven bags 14-14-14 per hectare.
Planting of Garlic
- Plant garlic not later than November 15.
- Follow traditional garlic spacing: 25 x 20 cm or 20 x 20 cm.
Mulching
- Spread rice straw or any available mulching materials (3 to 5 cm thick) over the field just after planting garlic.
Replanting and Thinning of Garlic
- Replant missing hills l0 to l5 days after planting.
- When the bulbs are pencil-size, remove excess plants, leaving one vigorous plant per hill.
Time of Planting Cotton
- Plant cotton 30 to 40 days after planting garlic (DAPG).
- Do not plant cotton later than December 15.
- Soak the cottonseeds in a fungicide solution for 6 to 10 hours before planting.
- Dibble 3 to 5 seeds per hill.
Planting Pattern
- Follow single row spacing of 75 to 100 cm and hill spacing of 30 to 40 cm.
Replanting and Thinning of Cotton
- Replant missing hills within 10 to 22 days after planting cotton (DAPC).
- Thin the cotton plants within 14 to 27 DAPC, leaving two vigorous plants per hill.
Fertilizer Application
- Topdress garlic with one bag of urea or two bags ammonium sulfate per hectare 40 to 50 DAPG.
- Sidedress cotton with the same quantity of fertilizer 42 to 47 DAPC.
- Irrigate immediately after each ferti-lizer application.
Irrigation
- Irrigate if the soil is too dry using the “hose method” but do not flood the area before planting garlic.
- Irrigate garlic 20 to 25 DAPG.
- Irrigate both crops 30 to 35 and 50 to 55 DAPC or 60 to 65 and 80 to 85 DAPG.
- Direct the irrigation water towards the cotton plants 70 to 75 DAPC.
- Irrigate cotton (garlic at this time has been harvested) 90 to 95 DAPC.
Harvesting
- Harvest garlic within 110 to 120 DAPG.
- Begin harvesting seedcotton three to four days after boll bursting or at about 125-130 DAPC.
- Place seedcotton in abaca or jute sacks and not in plastic bags to avoid contamination.
- Harvest cotton thrice during the season.
- Sundry seedcotton for at least three days.
Post-Harvest Practice
- After harvesting cotton, uproot and burn all plant debris to kill insect pests and pathogens still thriving in the cotton plants. This practice averts the development of pests that might attack the next cotton crop.
- Or, rotavate/plow under all plant debris in the field.
Marketing
- Marketing of cotton and garlic is not a problem.
- For cotton, it is bought by private traders operating in the area.
- For garlic, the farmer can sell his produce in the market, garlic centers or buyers that usually reach him right in his home.
Economic Advantage
- By intercropping cotton, the garlic farmer increases his income by 7.1% from the sale of seedcotton.