Performance of Forage Cactus Intercropped with Arboreal Legumes and Fertilized with Different Manure Sources

The use of agricultural practices such as fertilization and intercropping can improve the production of forage cacti. The objective of this study was to evaluate the agronomic characteristics of forage cactus intercropped with leguminous trees and fertilized with different sources of manure in the tropical semiarid region of Brazil. The research was carried out at the Agricultural and Livestock Research Enterprise of Pernambuco State during the period from March 2011 to September 2013. The following cultivation systems were used: (i) <i>Gliricidia sepium</i> (Jacq.) Kunth + forage cactus cv. IPA-Sertania [<i>Opuntia cochenillifera</i> (L.) Mill]; (ii) <i>Leucaena leucocephala</i> (Lam.) de Wit + forage cactus; and (iii) forage cactus in monoculture. All of these systems were fertilized with different sources of manure (cattle, goat, sheep, and broiler litter). The goat and sheep manure (16.6 and 16.5 Mg DM ha⁻¹ year⁻¹) provided the least production of cactus in the different cropping systems. Cattle manure provided greater production of forage and wood from legumes (1.4 and 4.3 Mg DM ha⁻¹ year⁻¹) and cactus (20.9 Mg DM ha⁻¹ year⁻¹). Gliricidia produced more forage and wood than Leucaena. Total production of the forage cactus-Gliricidia system produced 4.7 and 3.8 Mg DM ha⁻¹ of biomass and wood in two years, respectively. The production and morphological characteristics of the cactus increased at further distance from the trees (3 m), and the opposite effect was observed for the concentrations of N, <i>p</i>, and K. Thus, cropping systems using forage cactus and tree legumes fertilized with manure represent an option for tropical semiarid regions.