The neem tree (Azadirachta indica A. Juss), a species for cattle production

Emigdio E. Rodríguez del Río

ABSTRACT
The main objective of the work was to prove the importance of the neem tree (Azadirachta indica A. Juss), as a species to be used in cattle production systems. For such purpose three trials were used: 1) Comparative study of Azadirachta indica A. Juss, Khaya nyasica staff and Eucalyptus pellita F. muell as shade for cattle; 2) Performance of Azadirachta indica as shade tree and its effect on grasses and legumes; and 3) Use of Azadirachta indica for the control of Boophilus microplus in cattle. In the first experiment a comparison was made among A. indica, E. pellita and K. nyasica, as shade species for the animals, in which the neem tree turned out to be the most promising species integrally. For the second trial in which the growth of neem in diameter, height and crown width was evaluated in the first 10 years of development, as well as the performance of the pastureland formed by Cynodon nlemfuensis and several species of creeping legumes under full sunlight and under the canopy of the plants, proving that star grass has a higher percentage of appearance under shade, while T. labialis increased from 30 to 60 % its presence for both conditions with emphasis on the influence zone of the shade. Experiment 3, in which the acaricide action of the neem foliage and seeds on Boophylus microplus was evaluated; the effectiveness of the aqueous extracts from this species in the control of the ectoparasite that causes so much damage to cattle production in Cuba and the world, was proven. Duncan’s multiple range test and the analytical-descriptive method of the different evaluated indicators were used as statistical analysis for all the experiments. As a result, it was obtained that A. indica is an adequate species for shade as well as for the persistence of pasture and the control of B. microplus, and it thus constitutes a species to be considered in cattle production development plans.