Productivity of Cicer arietinum (chickpea) under a Prosopis cineraria agroforestry system in the arid regions of India

A study was conducted in the arid regions of Haryana to see the effect of Prosopis cineraria on the productivity of Cicer arietinum (chickpea). The effects of tree on chickpea in terms of plant density, total biomass, shoot biomass, leaf biomass, root biomass, pod biomass and grain yield was found to be more under the tree canopy and it decreased with an increase in distance. Beyond 14 m, no influence of P. cineraria was noticed. A strong direct negative correlation exists between the crop parameters measured and the distance from the tree. The grain yield of chickpea and other parameters studied were found to be maximum on the north side of trees and reduced significantly on the southern side. Thus the effect of P. cineraria was found to be synergistic. It was also observed that nutrient levels (N, P and K), moisture content and organic carbon of soil were higher under the tree canopy when compared to the open area. It is concluded that P. cineraria has no adverse effect on the productivity of chickpea crop but on the contrary it improves the productivity due to the improvement in soil nutrient status and conservation of moisture.