ABSTRACT

Two field experiments were carried out at NdumeIbeku in Umuahia North Local Government Area, UmuahiaAbia State in 2016 cropping season (early and late season) to determine the cropping system and seasonal effect on the growth and yield of maize and vegetable cowpea in an intercropping system. The experimental design was 2 x 3 split plot factorial in a Randomized Complete Block Design with 7 treatment combination replicated three times. The treatments were early and late season as main plot factor and cropping system (sole, maize, sole cowpea climbing, sole cowpea spreading, maize/cowpea climbing within rows, maize/cowpea climbing between rows, maize/cowpea spreading within rows, maize/cowpea spreading between rows as sub plot factor in 2016 cropping seasons. Cropping system influenced the growth, yield of maize and cowpea in 2016 cropping seasons. Early planting resulted in better emergence, longer vine, and higher number of cowpea branches per plant and there was no significant difference in the number of leaves per plant between early and late seasons. Within each cropping system pod production was highest when maize is intercropPED with cowpea climbing than when maize is intercropped with cowpea spreading. There was significant (P<0.05) effect on number of fresh pods per plant, weight of fresh pods per plant, fresh pod yield and seed yield. There was also difference in maize growth for emergence, plant height but there was no difference in number of leaves per plant between the seasons. The weight of grain per plant, 100 grain weight and grain yield were higher in early season than the late season while there was no difference in cropping system.  There was interaction effect of cropping system and season. There was no difference in number of weeds/m² and weed dry weight for the seasons, while there was significantly (P<0.05) difference in cropping system for number of weeds/m² (late) and weed dry weight/m^2.  And in any season the total land equivalent ration was between 1.31 and 1.42 showing about 31-42% yield advantage due to intercrop based on sole cropping of both maize and cowpea in relation to their intercrops. And in the late season the total land equivalent ratio was between 1.02 and 1.64. The yield advantages were more when spreading or climbing cowpea were intercropped between maize rows. Based on the research it was recommended that farmers should adopt early season cropping to enhance productivity.    .