Study of the Agronomic Performance of Maize (Zea mays L.) in Pure Culture and Intercropped with Black Bean (Phaseolus vulgaris L.) and Lima Bean (Phaseolus lunatus L.) in the Communal Section of Gaillard

The study ran an experiment in the communal section of Gaillard, in the locality of Bernard, to give the rural community cropping practices that could improve maize production. It used a randomized complete block design with four treatments and four repetitions, comparing pure maize with maize intercropped with legumes and the local farmers' practice, and measured growth, flowering and yield components.

The analysis of variance at the 5 percent threshold shows significant differences between the intercropped and pure cultures, and the best performance for all variables came from pure maize. Grain yield was 0.27 kilograms per square meter for pure maize and 0.23, 0.22 and 0.15 for the other treatments, the lowest being the farmers' practice. The author recommends repeating the trial in other areas.