Feed the Future Publications “Push and Pull” in Combatting Fall Army Worm and Witchweed (Striga)
In the Push-Pull system, crops that repel pests and/or attract pests’ predators are intercropped with maize, to ‘push’ pests away from the main crop. Plants that attract pests are planted around the field, to ‘pull’ pests away from the maize. Incorporating legumes in this system means that soil fertility gradually increases over time.
This brief also explains how a farmer in Mozambique managed her pigeon pea plants to repel fall armyworms. She tried sowing maize between pigeon pea plants that, after a previous season’s growth, were cut to a height of 50 cm and allowed to regrow. For reasons explained in the brief, this worked better than starting pigeon pea from seed each season.