Agronomic and economic (dis)advantages of intercropping young coffee and banana in central Burundi
(2026) Agronomy Journal — Vol. 118, n° 3 (2026)
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Nibasumba, Anaclet 
- Abstract
- Coffee (Coffea arabica L.) is an important crop for Burundian economy, and banana (Musa acuminata) residues are used for coffee mulching. To evaluate the option of producing banana residues in coffee plots and to assess interactions between crops, multi-location field trials were set up at Gitega and Kayanza sites from January 2009 to July 2012. Two density levels for coffee (1333 and 2667 trees ha −1) and banana (800 and 1600 plants ha −1) were combined in full factorial design complemented with monocropped plots for each density in Randomized Complete Block Design with three replications per site. Banana and coffee yields, land equivalent ratio and competitive ratio, growth characteristics, effect of shading on nutrient content in leaves, and economic benefits were determined. Banana had a significant (p ⩽ 0.05) negative effect on coffee yield and growth. With high density of coffee , banana reduced coffee yield by 35%-40% at low density and 67%-84% at high density. Land equivalent ratio values were always >1 in both sites, showing that inter-cropping is beneficial. In high density of coffee, net benefit increase was 58% at Gitega and 201% at Kayanza when intercropped with high density of banana compared to monoculture. Growing bananas with young coffee was financially profitable. However, banana density and suckers need to be managed to reduce their negative impact on coffee performance. Plain Language Summary Coffee is an important source of income for smallholder farmers in Burundi, and banana residues are commonly used to mulch coffee fields, which can reduce soil fertility in banana plots. To promote a more sustainable production system, field trials were conducted at two sites in major coffee-growing areas of Burundi, focusing on the intercropping of young coffee and young banana plants. Plots with different planting densities were established under both monocropping and intercropping systems. Abbreviations: CR, competitive ratio; HDB, high density banana; HDC, high density coffee; LDB, low density banana; LDC, low density coffee; LER, land equivalent ratio; MAI, monetary advantage index; NB, zero banana; RCBD, randomized complete block design.
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Nibasumba, A., Vanasten, P., Jassogne, L., Nkurunziza, C., Nahimana, G., Kaboneka, S., Delvaux, B., & Bielders, C. (2026). Agronomic and economic (dis)advantages of intercropping young coffee and banana in central Burundi. Agronomy Journal, 118(3). https://doi.org/10.1002/agj2.70402 (Original work published 2026)