China’s maize-soybean technology brings bumper harvest in Punjab

By Masood Sattar Khan
(Pakistan News & Features Services)

The harvest of maize-soybean strip inter-cropping demonstration in Bahawalpur, Punjab, was completed on July 6. The yields of soybean and maize reached 1,304 kg/ha and 8,596 kg/ha respectively, which exhibited satisfactory results.

This was indeed encouraging news for local farmers who desired growing soybean without curbing the cultivation of maize, the Gwadar Pro, a Chinese website, reported July 7. 

Maize harvest in this inter-cropping field outdistanced the country’s average maize yield which was only around 5,000 kg per hectare. Meanwhile, the farmers received considerable soybeans as an additional return. 

As the selling price of soybean was two to three times that of maize, when comparing the two crops as a whole, the overall economic benefit had been significantly improved. 

“If you calculate the total benefits, maize-soybean inter-cropping will be the best system in terms of income and ecological sustainability,” Muhammad Ali Raza, a Pakistani student of China’s Sichuan Agricultural University, remarked. 

Having been trained under the guidance and support of Professor Yang Wenyu, he is credited to have brought this technology from China to Pakistan. 

There’s a lack of soybean production in Pakistan. Till now Pakistan has relied on imports to meet the soybean needs. 

“Now increasing soybean area is encouraged in Pakistan. For farmers who are not ready to reduce their maize area, the best available option is to use the inter-cropping tech,” Ali stated, adding that Prof Yang was satisfied with the yield data and provided his professional advice for future planting.

In his opinion, the maize yield could have been lifted more if double quantity of fertilizer was applied to each unit length because in the inter-cropping filed the number of maize plants is twice as many as that in the pure maize field.

Furthermore, selecting shade-resistant soybean varieties is also a key point, and the yield of soybean can reach a new high. It’s also learnt that after COVID-19 pandemic ends, specialized machinery such as planters and harvesters will be introduced to Pakistan to further boost the production efficiency.