Production and Benefit Analysis of Various Potato Cropping Patterns in Yunnan Province
Potato planting in Yunnan Province had distinct diversity. The potato planting seasons and patterns in Yunnan Province included almost al the Chinese patterns from Hainan Province up to Heilongjiang Province. In the high altitude areas of more than 2400 m asl, spring cropping with monoculture system came to be the main cropping pattern and provided seed potatoes to low altitude areas. The economic benefit of potato was much better than highland barley and buckwheat. In the middle altitude areas from 1400 to 2400 m asl, various planting seasons existed, including spring, autumn, and early spring planting, and various planting patterns were included, monoculture, intercropping and interplanting. Although the production value of potato was a bit lower than tobacco, it was obviously higher than many contemporaneous crops, such as rice and maize. Intercropping and interplanting could greatly improve utilization efficiency of soil, temperature, light, water and fertilizer, and also increase ability of plants to resist disaster. In the altitude areas lower than 1400 m asl, winter cropping for one season was the dominating cropping pattern of potato. It included rice-winter potato rotation system and sugarcane potato intercropping. Rice planting in summer could provide food for farmers, while potato planting in winter could increase the income. Therefore, winter potato had became the main economic resource for farmers in those areas. The countries of Southeast Asia have a lot of winter fal owing fields, so rice-winter potato rotation pattern might have significant promotional values.
NETL
NSTL
万方数据
维普
