Published in Scientific Papers. Series B, Horticulture, Vol. LXVIV, Issue 2
Written by Gergana MLADENOVA, Milena YORDANOVA
The main goal of the experiment was to test the effect of intercropping on kale with other cold-resistant vegetable crops for winter-spring cultivation in a high tunnel. The experiment was conducted on the territory of the experimental field of the University of Forestry - Sofia (42° 7′ N, 23° 43′ E), during the period 2022-2023. Kale, variety “Common Curly”, was selected as the main crop, the seedlings of which were planted at a distance of 30x30 cm, during the first ten days of December. As a companion plants were selected: onion, variety “Stuttgarten” (with sets) and lettuce (with seedlings), variety “Lolo rosa”. Three variants have been developed: 1) kale - control (KC), 2) kale+onion (K+O), 3) kale+lettuce. (K+L) Biometric measurements were made during the harvest of the produce (April). It was found that in kale, intercropping affects the leaf rosette, leaf size and dry matter content. The plants have a more compact leaf rosette, the leaves are shorter but wider and accumulate a higher percentage (9.5-13.5%) of dry matter compared to the control (8.5%).
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