Effect of intercropping faba bean and chickpea on sugar beet

Abstract

Sugar beet had become one of the most important sugar crops which cultivated in Egypt. The area that allocated to sugar beet in Egypt had increased mostly in the recent years. In 1981 season the sugar production in Egypt was restricted to sugar cane crop. The beet sugar production had started in 1982 season as it shared in the total sugar production by 2.5% in that season. Recently, the contribution of sugar beet to sugar production increased largely, as it reached 28.9% of the total sugar production in 2002 season, whereas the sugar cane contribution was 71.1%. This mainly due to increasing cultivated sugar beet area from

16900 fed. in 1982 season to 153800 fed. in 2002 season, and increasing sugar beet yield from 12.6 ton/fed. in 1982 season to 20.6 ton/fed. in 2002 season*.

Sugar beet has a relative advantages as compared to sugar cane. These advantages could be summarized as follows: 1- Sugar beet grows well in newly reclaimed soils, then it could

extend the sugar beet area in these lands which are unsuitable for sugar cane. 2- Sugar beet water requirements represent about Y.. of sugar cane

requirements so, by replacing sugar cane with sugar beet we could safe the water to utilize it in cultivation further crops. 3- Sugar beet remains in the soil for nearly six to seven months

whereas sugar cane remains all of the year.

Since the cultivated area in Egypt is limited, the agriculture intensification had became urgent necessity to optimize the utilizing of