Jack bean (Canavalia ensiformis) intercrop to reduce weeds and stalk borer damage in sugarcane

The aim of this study was to assess the efficiency of two intercrop species, <i>Canavalia ensiformis</i> and <i>Desmodium intortum</i>, to reduce weed growth, herbicide use and damage by the stalk borer <i>Chilo sacchariphagus</i> in sugarcane cropping system in Reunion.
We compared six inter-row management techniques: four treatments combined the two intercrops <i>Canavalia ensiformis</i> or <i>Desmodium intortum</i> sown either early (between 0 and 2.1 months after sugarcane emergence) or late (between 1.3 and 3.7 months after sugarcane emergence), a treatment where no weeding was carried out on the inter-row, and a treatment with chemical weeding of the inter-row (CcWp). In all treatments, the sugarcane row was weeded chemically and manually. The six treatments were compared in a multilocal randomized block design with tree localities, during one or two crop cycles depending on the locality.