I.

AGRONOMIC CHARACTERISTICS
Calopo
(Calopogonium mucunoides
Desv.) is a vigorous, hairy
annual or short-lived
perennial trailing legume. It
can reach several meters in
length and form a dense,
tangled mass of foliage, 30-
50 cm deep. It is an annual
creeper of 0:3-0.5 m height.

Stem is succulent, covered with long brown hairs. Its lower part
becomes creeper while upper part turns to twiner. The leaves are up to
16 cm long and trifoliate. The hairy leaflets are 4-10 cm long x 2-5 cm
broad, ovate to elliptical. The inflorescence is a slender hairy raceme
that may be up to 20 cm long and bears 2 to 12 blue or purple small
flowers. The pod is hairy, yellowish-brown. 4-5 cm long. It contains 4-8
seeds. There are 73,000 seeds in 1 kg.

Calopo is mainly used as cover crop, alone or in mixture with

other legumes, especially in rubber, oil palm or in young forest
Submitted by: plantations. Calopo is a pioneer species: it provides soil protection
ROGER Y. IBAÑEZ, JR.
PhD in Animal Science Student against erosion, reduces soil temperature, improves soil fertility and
controls weeds (Cook et al., 2005; Chin Chen Peng et al., 1997).
Submitted to:
DR. DANILO L. LAMELA
Professor

Republic of the Philippines

DR. EMILO B. ESPINOSA SR. MEMORIAL STATE
COLLEGE OF AGRICULTURE AND TECHNOLOGY
Poblacion, Cawayan, Masbate
II. DISTRIBUTION
It is a native of tropical South America but distributed naturally
in Malaya and Indonesia. It was introduced in 1930 as a cover crop in
India. Now widespread throughout the tropics.
III. CULTURAL MANAGEMENT
Climatic Requirement
It has shown excellent performance under wide range of climate
preferably hot, humid tropics with an annual rainfall in excess of 1525
mm. It is moderately drought and shade tolerant.
Soil requirements
Grows on a wide range of soil types, but prefers clay soils with
pH 4.5-5.0. In tropical America, grows well on acid soils with high Al
saturation. Poor tolerance of salinity.
Temperature Requirements
Grows best at 32ºC maximum and 24ºC minimum daily
temperatures, with outer limits of 36ºC maximum and 18ºC minimum.
Prefers humid-tropical, low elevations but will grow up to altitudes of
2,000 m asl.
Land Preparation
One deep ploughing with disc plough followed by two discings
and planking are sufficient.
Planting distance
It is sown at the beginning of rainy season through broadcasting the
seeds @ 6-8 kg/ha and then covered with soil but in line sowing the
distance should be 1.2 to 1.8 m. It can also be propagated by planting
the rooted slips.
Seed Management
To break the dormancy the seeds are to be treated through any
of the following methods (i) Concentrated sulphuric acid (S.G. 1.8) for
20 minutes or with 24 or 36 N sulphuric acid for 7 min. then wash and
dry. (ii) hot water treatment (3 minutes at 75ºC).
Reproductive development
Flowering is initiated by short days (14 hours), depending on
accession. Calopo is self-fertile and seeds freely. May act as an annual
in seasonally dry environments.
Fertilizer Management
It responds well to phosphorus application and recommended
fertilizer dose is 20 kg N + 60 kg P + 30 kg K/ha. On acid soils in the
Pantanal, Brazil, productivity was improved by fertilizer application using
20 kg/ha P, 20 kg/ha S, 60 kg/ha K and 1 t/ha dolomitic limestone.
Disease Management
Susceptible to the root-knot nematode. For conventional farming
systems, soil solarization, alone or in combination with organic
amendments, was found effective towards Meloidogyne javanica
Companion Species
Grasses: Excellent compatibility with tall, erect grasses such as
Rhodes grass (Chloris gayana ), pangola grass (Digitaria eriantha ) and
setaria (Setaria sphacelata ), because it is little eaten. However, its low
palatability can lead to calopo dominance. Sometimes oversown into
signal grass (Brachiaria decumbens ) pastures in Brazil.
 Legumes: As cover crop in tree plantations in southeast Asia, Magnesium g/kg DM 3.7 1.1 2.7 6.3 10
often planted in a species mixture with one or more of the species C. Manganese mg/kg DM 44 38 49 2
caeruleum , Pueraria phaseoloides , Centrosema molle , and Desmodium Zinc mg/kg DM 33 30 36 2
ovalifolium . Copper mg/kg DM 9 9 9 2
Iron mg/kg DM 557 525 590 2

IV. NUTRIENT CONTENTS Secondary metabolites Unit Avg SD Min Max Nb

Calopo (Calopogonium mucunoides), aerial part, fresh Tannins (eq. tannic acid) g/kg DM 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 3
Tannins, condensed (eq. g/kg DM 1.0 1
catechin)

Ruminant nutritive Unit Avg SD Min Max Nb

Main analysis Unit Avg SD Min Max Nb values
Dry matter % as fed 33.1 10.6 21.0 54.5 13 OM digestibility, % 60.4 *
Crude protein % DM 12.8 5.0 3.8 22.9 17 Ruminant
Crude fibre % DM 34.8 5.3 22.4 43.2 15 Energy digestibility, % 57.7 *
NDF % DM 54.4 7.7 45.0 63.7 4 ruminants
ADF % DM 41.5 6.0 33.9 50.6 6 DE ruminants MJ/kg DM 10.8 *
Lignin % DM 9.7 2.2 6.8 12.9 7 ME ruminants MJ/kg DM 8.6 *
Ether extract % DM 2.9 1.4 1.4 6.3 13 ME ruminants (gas MJ/kg DM 7.1 1
production)
Ash % DM 8.8 3.2 5.7 19.1 17
Gross energy MJ/kg DM 18.7 *
Calopo (Calopogonium mucunoides), aerial part, dry
Minerals Unit Avg SD Min Max Nb
Calcium g/kg DM 11.1 5.0 4.4 21.8 15
Phosphorus g/kg DM 2.0 1.7 0.9 8.1 15
Potassium g/kg DM 9.3 5.0 3.6 20.7 10
Main analysis Unit Avg SD Min Max Nb
Sodium g/kg DM 0.6 1
Dry matter % as fed 88.3 1
Crude protein % DM 18.3 1 VI. UTILIZATION
NDF % DM 55.6 1
Calopo can be grazed or cut and fed fresh. It can yield up to 14
ADF % DM 33.9 1
t DM/ha if it is harvested in a single cut when pods are already mature.
Lignin % DM 6.8 1 When cut every 9-12 weeks, DM yields are about 4-6 t/ha (Chin Chen
Ether extract % DM 3.4 1 Peng et al., 1997). When calopo is grown as a perennial, DM yields
Ash % DM 10.4 1 decrease over years (FAO, 2011; Cook et al., 2005). It is recommended
Minerals Unit Avg SD Min Max Nb to graze it rotationally with rest periods of 8 to 12 weeks (Chin Chen
Calcium g/kg DM 7.1 0.6 6.7 7.7 3 Peng et al., 1997). Calopo is rarely made into hay or ensiled, though this
Phosphorus g/kg DM 1.4 0.5 0.9 1.9 3 is possible. It may be used as deferred feed to combat drought but has
Potassium g/kg DM 7.0 1
a low nutritive value (Cook et al., 2005). It becomes an important part
of the diet during the dry season when other species have disappeared
Magnesium g/kg DM 2.0 0.2 1.8 2.2 3
(Giller, 2001).
Zinc mg/kg DM 22 18 26 2
Copper mg/kg DM 11 10 11 2 It is used as a fodder crop and is less palatable at early stage but
Iron mg/kg DM 224 208 239 2 after flowering it becomes more palatable. Being fast grower, it is good
for soil conservation purposes. In new mixed pasture, the Calopo can be
Ruminant nutritive Unit Avg SD Min Max Nb
sown after the grasses get established. It fixes 3.8 mg N/day per plant
values and 87 per cent of the fixed N is transferred to the top. It is frost and
drought susceptible but is an excellent flood tolerant and grows well in
ME ruminants (gas MJ/kg DM 7.1 1
production) acid soils.
VII. STORAGE / CONSERVATION
V. SUSTAINABLE USE It is usually cut by hand and is seldom conserved as hay or silage.
It gives full cover in 2-3 months and can be harvested at 8 weeks Whether grazed or cut and fed, calopo is often refused by cattle
intervals after establishment. Grazing can also be done rotationally at although they eat it less reluctantly during the dry season.
interval of 8-12 weeks