Effects of Plant Density and Water Stress on Competitive Ability and Yield of Medicago Sativa L. and Bromus tomentellus Boiss.in Mono and Mixed Cropping

Abstract

The effects of plant density and water stress on yield of Medicago sativa and Bromus tomentellus was studied. A greenhouse experiment was conducted at Isfahan University of Technology in 2013. The experiment included 18 treatments, three crop compositions (M.sativa, B. tomentellus or mixture of the two), two plant density levels, three watering regimes and four replicates, arranged in a completely randomized block design. Results showed that total yield of M. sativa mono-cropping was higher than mixed cropping and it was higher than B. tomentellus mono-cropping. Land Equivalent Ratio (LER) values were less than 1 for all mixed cropping treatments, indicated the interspecific competition in mixed cropping. The biomass production per plant decreased with increasing density, competition for resource utilization and water stress. Compare of above-ground and below-ground dry matter showed that M. sativa appeared to be more constrained by intraspecific than by interspecific competition, Conversely, B. tomentellus was more suppressed by interspecific competition exerted by M. sativa than by intraspecific competition. Relative competition intensity (RCI) values were positive for B. tomentellus and negative for M.sativa, implying that competitive ability of M.sativa was higher than B. tomentellus in mixed cropping .

Keywords

• Bromus tomentellus
• Intra-specific competition
• Inter-specific competition
• Medicago sativa
• Mixed cropping
• Mono-cropping.