Intercropping maize and peanut can increase crop yields by optimizing how they use sunlight. In a two-year study, researchers found that intercropping maize and peanut together captured more sunlight than just growing peanut alone, but less than growing maize alone. Increasing the density of maize plants in the intercropping system improved how efficiently maize used sunlight. The efficiency of peanut in using sunlight also increased when grown in the intercropping system. Overall, the higher yields from intercropping maize and peanut were mainly due to the improved efficiency of peanut in using sunlight. These findings can help farmers improve their crop management and design better farming systems to make the most of sunlight in intercropping.