An innovative experiment growing perennial cereal grains and legumes in the same fields is sprouting benefits for crop performance and sustainability, according to a new University of Alberta study.
Using two seeding methods in different climatic regions across Alberta, researchers were able to show reliably consistent levels of forage productivity and quality when two types of the grains were grown alongside three legumes.
Forage — the green stems and leaves left in fields after grain is harvested — is a source of fibre necessary for ruminants like cattle.
The findings, gleaned from the first year of an ongoing project exploring the benefits and challenges of intercropping — planting more than one crop together — represent "a positive step for sustainable forage production," says Cosmas Ugwu, a PhD candidate in soil science in the Faculty of Agricultural, Life & Environmental Sciences who led the study.
