8 



intercropping practices in Southeast Asia and in Africa. Short-season 

 crops such as corn or sorghum ( Sorghum bicolor L.) are frequently inter- 

 cropped with upland rice and cassava (Manihot esculenta L,) or pigeon 

 pea ( Ca.-janus ca.ian Millsp.) creating a 9 "to lO-month cropping season 

 with several harvests and a single major tillage operation. This system 

 enables efficient utilization of land, solar radiation, water, and labor 

 resources (8) . 



Most farmers use a combination of enterprises with different 

 resource requirements. Some enterprises may be of lower productivity 

 but higher in stability. Others may be labor or cash-intensive and 

 highly productive, but unstable from the biological, management or 

 economic standpoint. The net effect is to balance the farmer's resources 

 in meeting his needs for productivity and stability (68). 



Management of Vegetables in Cropping Systems 

 Vegetables are often grown as component crops in a wide array 

 of cropping patterns (I67). Thus, management of vegetable crops is 

 dependent on the type of cropping patterns. Asian farmers plant field 

 and vegetable crops following rice or other staple crops {^7, 68, 70, 

 138). The vegetable crops planted depend on the availability of 

 resources such as irrigation, labor, cash inputs, and market. High 

 management vegetable crops such as cabbage, pole bean, cauliflower 

 (Brassica oleracea L. Botrytis Group), and tomato ( Lycopersicon escu - 

 lentum Mill.) are grown after rice where there is sufficient irrigation 

 and market incentive (24). Farmers use stakes, hi^ levels of ferti- 

 lizers and pesticides on crops like tomato and pole lima be.an (Phaseolus 

 lunatus L. ) where crop market value is high. Conversely, low 



