Diurnal and Seasonal Light Transmission to Cowpea in Sorghum–Cowpea Intercrops in Mali

Tall cereal–short legume intercropping is ubiquitous in the semiarid tropics of West Africa, yet little is known regarding the dynamics of light interception in these systems. A field study was conducted in Cinzana, Mali, to characterize light transmission to cowpea in sorghum [ Sorghum bicolor (L.) Moench]–cowpea [ Vigna unguiculata (L.) Walp] intercropping systems. Different sorghum–cowpea planting configurations were used to examine photosynthetically active radiation (PAR) incident on the cowpea. The 4‐m tall sorghum cultivar CSM 219E intercepted > 60 % of incoming PAR from 2 m height to harvest (50 days). Consequently, total seasonal PAR received by intercropped cowpea was 60–66 % that of the unshaded monocrop. Thirty‐minute averages of PAR transmitted around solar noon had poor agreement (R 2 =0.53) with fractional daily light interception and overestimated seasonal PAR received by cowpea by 17 % in the north–south row orientation used. Thirty‐minute averages at 1100 h (R 2 =0.93) and 1430 h (R 2 =0.91) had the closest correlation to diurnal average PAR incident on cowpea. This study indicates that tall guineense sorghum captures significant amounts of light at low leaf area index (LAI) (< 2.0). Row orientation, time of measurement, plant height and LAI should be considered in calculating light interception in these intercropping systems.