IMPACT OF POPULUS DELTOIDES AND DALBERGIA SISSOO SHELTERBELTS ON WHEAT—A COMPARATIVE STUDY

SUMMARY

To compare the impact of Populus deltoides and Dalbergia sissoo shelterbelts on wheat, a study was performed around Chandigarh, Northwestern India. A reduction in the growth and yield of wheat was noticed in the sheltered conditions in contrast to unsheltered open fields. More losses were observed on the northern sides of the shelterbelts than on the southern sides. The performance of wheat, particularly in the initial 0–3 m block, however, was deleteriously affected in the fields sheltered by P. deltoides compared to those sheltered by D. sissoo. In P. deltoides sheltered fields reductions in crop density, biomass and yield continued up to the 9–12 m block except plant height which was reduced only up to the 6–9 m block. In contrast, in the fields sheltered by D. sissoo the decrease in growth and yield of wheat was mainly in the first two blocks, i.e., 0–3 and 3–6 m, from the tree belt. No apparent change thereafter was noticed in either of the sheltered fields. The conclusion was that wheat performed better in the fields sheltered by D. sissoo, an indigenous tree, than those by P. deltoides, an exotic, and that performance was better on the south of shelterbelts than on the north side.

Key words:

• agroforestry
• growth
• orientation
• shelterbelts
• tree-crop interactions
• wheat
• yield