A two-cultivar-two-layer planting pattern for high yield cultivation of cottonand and its light distribution in the canopy

An optimal canopy structure is very important for achieving high yield. Two-cultivar-two-layer planting is an effective planting pattern with higher yield for optimal light distribution in the canopy. Two-cultivar-two-layer planting involves two crop cultivars with different shoot architecture to form different layers in the field. Analysis of the light distribution in the canopy showed that in the early season before canopy closure, the light intensity in the different layer of two-cultivar-two-layer was lower than that of normal treatment. But in the late season after canopy closure, the light intensity of two-cultivar-two-layer planting was higher than that of normal treatment. The result indicates that two-cultivar-two-layer planting can intercept more light than normal treatment. Also the wind speed and CO_2 concentration inside the canopy of two-cultivar-two-layer planting were greater than those of CK.