EVALUATION OF CROPPING PATTERN POTENTIAL UNDER DIFFERENT TILLAGE METHODS OF DRY SEASON CROPS IN NON-SALINE ECOSYSTEM OF BANGLADESH

Parna Das, Swadesh Chandra Samanta, Md. Harun-or-Rashid, Mahedi Hasan, Badhan Talukder, Subrata Sikder, Md. Isfatuzzaman Bhuyan

DOI: 10.26480/bda.01.2026.01.10

ABSTRACT
The productivity of cropping systems in coastal areas—particularly in the tidal, non-saline ecosystems—is generally low. This study aims to evaluate the agro-economic performance of selected Rabi cropping systems under different tillage methods—specifically strip tillage and conventional tillage—within a non-saline tidal ecosystem. The experiment was conducted in farmers’ fields from May 2019 to May 2020. The experiment included five cropping patterns: (1) Fallow–T. Aman rice (Moulata)–Mungbean (BARI Mung-6), (2) Aus rice (BRRI dhan55)–T. Aman rice (BRRI dhan77)–Cowpea, (3) Aus rice (BRRI dhan55)–T. Aman rice (BRRI dhan77)–Mungbean (BARI Mung-6), (4) Aus rice (BRRI dhan55)–T. Aman rice (BRRI dhan77)–Maize (DON111), and (5) Aus rice (BRRI dhan55)–T. Aman rice (BRRI dhan77)–Sunflower (Hysun-33). Two tillage methods—strip tillage and conventional tillage—were evaluated. A split-plot design with three replications was used for the experiment. The results showed that strip tillage outperformed conventional tillage in terms of plant height, plant population (m⁻²), number of fruits per plant, number of seeds per fruit, seed yield, and straw yield. The highest yield was obtained from maize under strip tillage, with a yield of 10.30 t ha⁻¹. Among the cropping systems, the Aus rice–T. Aman rice–Sunflower system was found to be the most profitable for the non-saline ecosystem. This system achieved a rice equivalent yield (REY) of 21.35 t ha⁻¹ and a benefit-cost ratio (BCR) of 1.98. These findings can support policymakers in promoting increased cropping intensity in the coastal region of Bangladesh.

KEYWORDS
Cropping systems; Conventional tillage; Crop productivity; Maize; Aus Rice; Coastal ecosystem.