Farmers in Kailali increasingly turning to multi-cropping in banana fields

Tikapur (Kailali): Farmers in Kailali are increasingly adopting multi-cropping practices. Banana cultivators have begun growing maize, chillies, mustard, and other crops alongside banana plantations.

Tekendra Dhami, a farmer from Baghmara in Tikapur Municipality-4, has cultivated maize in his banana fields and was preparing for a second maize harvest this year. He has already sold maize produced from his banana fields once and is now growing maize again alongside bananas.

Dhami has cultivated maize along with bananas on 6.5 bighas of land. He has already harvested maize worth lakhs of rupees once and is now cultivating a second crop. “The ready corn was sold green in the market in Chaitra, and since it is roasted, the consumption was good,” he said. “Now, I estimate that the next corn crop will produce about 45 quintals. This crop will be ready in the first week of Shrawan, and it will also find a good market.”

Dhami, who has been cultivating bananas on 21 bighas for a long time, also cultivated chillies and mustard in banana fields last year. While growing bananas, he has changed the timing of plantation practices. Previously planting bananas in Asar, he has now started planting them on half of his land in Mangsir for the past two years.

“Banana planted in Asar is ready in Bhadau. Since everyone plants in Asar, there is a problem of not getting good bananas in the cold season. That is why I have started planting bananas in two seasons,” Dhami said. “I have been cultivating multiple crops with bananas planted in Mangsir. By cultivating in this way, you are protected from wind and storm damage during the rainy season. You can avoid disasters and get more than two crops.”

Another farmer, Sher Bahadur Saud of Pahadipur in Tikapur-5, planted bananas in Asar last year and grew maize and mustard in between in Asoj. “We cultivated it to use it on one bigha of land, sowed little banana and mustard in between,” he said. “More than two quintals of mustard were produced. We sold green maize for Rs. 40,000, and we also have 60 kg of maize grain.”

Saud said off-season maize farming has brought good benefits. Bananas are now thriving in his field. “You can earn up to Rs. 500,000 from banana farming,” he said. “I have cultivated bananas on five bighas of land, and other crops can be grown alongside bananas. If you work hard, you can earn enough.”

Multi-cropping is the practice of growing two or more crops on the same land simultaneously. Farmers are increasingly attracted to it due to the potential for higher income. Agricultural experts say that combining cash crops with other vegetables or grains allows better use of land, increases production diversity, and boosts income.

Dr. Bishnu Vilas Adhikari, head of the Department of Agricultural Sciences at Sudurpaschim University, said multi-cropping is beneficial for farmers. “There is one main crop, and a leguminous crop is planted in between. Two or more crops can be planted in it,” he said. “Soybean and millet can be planted in corn farming. If mustard is planted, you can plant yams, lentils, and alaska inside the mustard.”

According to Dr. Adhikari, planting additional crops in unused spaces increases yield, and even if one crop is damaged by pests or diseases, farmers can still benefit from the other.

“One crop benefits the other crop. Planting different crops prevents different types of pests and diseases. Farmers should give priority to cover crops,” he said. “If you plant cover crops in a mixture, they fix nitrogen in the atmosphere, which improves soil fertility. Crop rotation and mixed cropping provide additional benefits.”

Hundreds of farmers are engaged in banana cultivation in Kailali, covering about 1,000 hectares of land. Since banana crops take more than a year to harvest, farmers can grow other crops in the same field within the cycle. Experts say multi-cropping helps conserve soil, reduce water evaporation, and improve fertilizer and water use efficiency.