Effect of different cereal blends on the quality of Injera a staple food in the highlands of Ethiopia

Majority of the Ethiopian population are dependent on tef (Eragrostis tef (Zucc)  trotter) flour to make injera, a staple food in Ethiopia, although injera could be made  from different cereals. The price of tef, however, is high and the yield potential of the  crop is low. Thus, searching for alternative cheaper grains and developing a blend of  different cereal flours that can produce injera of acceptable quality and improved  nutritional value would be important. This study was conducted to evaluate the  sensory quality of injera made from a blend of different cereals (Tef, barley, sorghum  and maize) with differing ratios: 100, 75, 50 and 25%. The sensory evaluation of  injera was conducted at Mekelle University in a replicated trial. The results  revealed  significant differences among the cereal flour blends in injera texture,  mouth feeling, suppleness and overall rate, while colour, taste and the appearance of injera surface gas holes were non- significant. Injera made from 100% tef flour got the highest preference rank in terms of the texture, mouth feeling, suppleness and overall ratings. Injera made from 50:50 tef + barley blend was the second best in  both texture and suppleness followed by 50:50 tef + sorghum, 50: 50 tef + maize  blends and tef + barley + sorghum blend of equal ratio. Similarly, results from blend of tef + barley + maize, tef + sorgum + maize and from the four varietal blends in  equal ratios produced very good injera quality. From the study results injera quality ranked next to sole tef (tef + barley, tef + sorghum, tef + maize in 50:50 blends and tef + barley + sorghum in equal ratios) could be used as an alternative option for  injera utilization and could provide nutritional and dietary benefits to consumers.Keywords: Sensory attributes, Injera quality, cereal flour blends, Tef, Ethiopia

Agronomic Performance of Integrated Use of Organic and Inorganic Fertilizers on Rice (Oryza sativa L.) in Tselemti District of North-Western Tigray, Ethiopia

A variety of biological and economic interactions between crop and livestock make crops-livestock integration appealing to the Ethiopian farmers. The decline in soil fertility is widespread in Tigray, Ethiopia, and is threatening food security. The ever-increasing price of inorganic fertilizers (IF) is becoming a main problem for majority of farmers. Hence there is a need for alternative low cost soil fertility enhancing technologies. Farmyard manure (FYM) can be an alternative but its shortage limits its use as organic fertilizer. In addition  to  its  nutrient  supply,  farmyard  manure  improves  the physicochemical  conditions  of  soils due to its residual effect in the soil’s fertility status. Integrated Nutrient Management (INM) which implies combined application of organic and inorganic fertilizers and helps to overcome the problems associated with single application of either source for enhanced crop productivity. Based on this fact, a 2 factorial asymmetric experiment was conducted, in 2011/12, to evaluate the effect of integrated application of inorganic fertilizers and FYM on yield and yield components of upland rice. A 4x3 factorial experiment consisting of four levels of inorganic fertilizers (0, 25, 50 and 75 kg/ha) and three levels of FYM (0, 6 and 9 t/ha) was laid out in RCB Design with three replications. Rice (variety: NERICA-3) was used as an indicator crop and planted in rows. The results revealed that application of 9t/ha FYM with 75 kg/ha of IF resulted in grain yield of 44.4Ql/ha (p< 0.05) and delayed flowering and maturity by about 14.67 days and 20.33 days respectively. However, more such studies need to be conducted at various soil and agro-climatic conditions to generate more detailed information. Keywords: DAP, Fertilizers, FYM, INM, NERICA, Rice, Urea, Tigray, Yield

The Impact of Urban Home Gardening on Household Socio-economy

Home gardens are an important consideration in terms of household socio-economy and yet their significance is often unrecognized. This is particularly more relevant in tropical region such as Ethiopia as home gardens have been a way of life for centuries in the region generally and in Mekelle city in particular. The present study tries to examine the urban home garden practices and evaluate their significance towards household socio-economy in Mekelle city. A total of 89 home gardens were randomly selected for the study. A combination of complete plant inventory, demarcation of plots with 10m*10m for tree plants, 5m*5m for shrubs and 1m* 1m for herbs as well as interview were used to collect data. The result showed that the cultivated land size of sample home gardens ranged from 50-500m2 with mean 214.16m2. About 99% of the assessed home gardens were established on open areas of their garden in response to getting more environmental benefits, food and cash to support family. Household income from home garden per year ranges from 657.00 to 38000.00 Birr with average per household income of 9411.20 Birr. The regression analysis showed that farm size, distance from water source and distance from nursery site are significantly affected the income of households at less than 1% probability level as well as educational status of the household is also influenced the income from home garden at less than 5% probability level. The present study exposed that contribution of urban home gardening goes beyond gap filling where, economic important and environmental benefited crops dominated in the home garden. Paying due attention to urban home garden development has significant role in addressing household socio-economy benefits in the future. The availability of water, improved seeds and incidence of pests and insects are the most determinant factors that influence the sustainability of urban home gardening. Keywords: Ethiopia, home garden, household, Mekelle, socio-economy, urba

The Impact of Urban Home Gardening on Plant Species Conservation and Environmental Sustainability

Home gardens are an important consideration in terms of environmental sustainability and plant species conservation and yet their significance is often unrecognized. This is particularly more relevant in tropical region such as Ethiopia as home gardens have been a way of life for centuries in the region generally and in Mekelle city in particular. The present study tries to examine the urban home garden practices and evaluate their significance towards environmental benefits and plant species conservation in Mekelle city. A total of 89 home gardens were randomly selected for the study. A combination of complete plant inventory, demarcation of plots with 10m*10m for tree plants, 5m*5m for shrubs and 1m* 1m for herbs as well as interview were used to collect data. The result showed that the cultivated land size of sample home gardens ranged from 50-500m2 with mean 214.16m2. About 99% of the assessed home gardens were established on open areas of their garden in response to getting more environmental benefits, food and cash to support family. From the total of 72 species that recorded in the home garden, Swiss chard (Beta vulgaris L.),Papaya (Carica papaya L.), Rhamnus prinoides ,Ruta chalepensis, and guava (Psidium guajava) were the most cultivated crops in the home gardens of the study site. The present study exposed that contribution of UHG goes beyond gap filling where, economic important and environmental benefited crops dominated in the home garden. The main advantages of urban home gardening practices are income supplementation, nutritional improvement due to food diversity by providing the urban society with fresh food and its urban environmental guarantee due to conserve plant species diversity and waste utilization. Paying due attention to urban home garden development has significant role in addressing environmental benefits in the future. The availability of water, improved seeds and incidence of pests and insects are the most determinant factors that influence the sustainability of urban home gardening. Keywords: urban home garden, environmental benefit, plant species diversity, Mekelle, Ethiopi

Grain Yield Based Cluster Analysis and Correlation of Agronomic Traits of Sesame (Sesamum indicum L.) Genotypes in Ethiopia

The experiment was conducted in the western Tigray region of Northern Ethiopia in three locations and three growing seasons (a total of seven environments). The objective of the study was to assess the interrelation ship of the genotypes in their grain yield and other agronomic traits. The experiment was laid out in RCBD with a total and harvestable plot size of 14m2 and 10 m2 respectively. In the experiment a total of thirteen sesame genotypes were used and evaluated for the interrelation ship of their grain yield and other agronomic traits. Based on their grain yield the thirteen genotypes were grouped in to four clusters and the maximum genetic divergence (D2= 215.57) was observed between cluster-II and cluster-III. Grain yield had a  significant and positive correlation (P<0.01) with oil content (r = 0.79), number of branches (r = 0.7) and number of capsules (r =0.68). In contrast to this, yield was  negatively correlated  with days to maturity (r = -0.58 ) and days to flowering (r = -0.11). Exhaustive assessment of the association of grain yield and other agronomic traits is indispensably important for further breeding program and enhancing grain yield of sesame. Keywords: Cluster, Correlation, Genotype, Grain yiel

Interrelationships of Sweet Potato Varieties and their Characters for Yield Determination

Seven sweet potato varieties were evaluated for their relationship (similarity and differences) in southern and eastern zones of Tigray, Ethiopia in 2012. Randomized complete block design with three replications was used for the experiment. Cluster analysis based on ward's method using Squared Euclidian distance was performed for clustering the varieties. Moreover, all characters were standardized before the distance matrix is done due to variables are in different units of characters and to minimize the effect of scale differences. The combined analysis of variance across locations showed significant variation among genotypes, locations and the genotypes by locations interaction..The superior mean total root yield (26.82 t/ha) was obtained at Kukufto testing location while the inferior yield (13.45 t/ha) was at Rarhe. Similarly, genotype LO gave the highest mean total root yield (30.9 t/ha), but bellela gave the lowest (7.78 t/ha). The AMMI analysis also showed highly significant difference for genotypes, locations and the genotypes by locations interaction. The genotype main effect contributed more to the total variability (54.1%) indicating that the variation was largely due to the inheritance of genotype effect. The genotype by location interaction was further partitioned using AMMI model and the first two principal components explained 100% of the total variability. AMMI biplot view of this study identified kukufto as best testing location and LO, Tulla and Kulfo as best genotypes for south and south east zones of Tigray region

Cultural Effects on Sorghum Varieties Grown, Traits Preferred, and Seed Management Practices in Northern Ethiopia

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Nitrogen deficiency tolerance and responsiveness of durum wheat genotypes in Ethiopia

Development of low-nitrogen (N) tolerant and N-responsive durum wheat genotypes is required since nitrogen efficiency has emerged as a highly desirable trait from economic and environmental perspectives. Two hundred durum wheat genotypes were evaluated at three locations under optimum (ON) and low (LN) nitrogen conditions to screen genotypes for low-nitrogen tolerance and responsiveness to an optimum N supply. The results showed significant variations among the durum wheat genotypes for low-N tolerance and responsiveness. The average reduction in grain yield under the LN condition was 48.03% across genotypes. Only 17% of the genotypes tested performed well (grain yield reduction <40%) under LN conditions. Based on the absolute grain yield, biomass yield, and normalized difference vegetative index value, on average, 32, 14, 17, and 37% of the tested genotypes were classified as efficient and responsive, efficient and nonresponsive, inefficient and responsive, and inefficient and nonresponsive, respectively. Considering the absolute and relative grain yield, biomass yield, normalized difference vegetative index values, and stress tolerance indices as selection criteria, 17 genotypes were chosen for subsequent breeding. Among the screening indices, geometric mean productivity, stress tolerance index, yield index, and stress susceptibility index exhibited positive and significant correlations with grain yield under both N conditions; hence, either of these traits can be used to select low-N-tolerant genotypes. The common genotypes identified as LN-tolerant and responsive to N application in this study could be used as parental donors for developing N-efficient and responsive durum wheat varieties

Yield and Nutrient Use Efficiency of Bread Wheat (Triticum Aestivum L.) as Influenced by Time and Rate of Nitrogen Application in Enderta, Tigray, Northern Ethiopia

Wheat is an important staple crop in arid and semi-arid areas of the Tigray region of Ethiopia. However, the yield and quality of the crop is markedly constrained by low soil fertility, inappropriate rate and timing of nitrogen application. Therefore, an experiment was conducted to elucidate the effect of different rates and timing of nitrogen fertilizer application on the yield, quality, and nitrogen use efficiency of bread wheat varieties during 2013 and 2014 main cropping seasons. The treatments consisted of four rates of nitrogen (23, 46, 69, and 92 kg N ha-1), three timing of N application (½ at sowing + ½ at tillering, ¼ at sowing + ½ at tillering + ¼ at anthesis, and 1/3rd at sowing + 1/3 rd at tillering + 1/3rd at anthesis) and two bread wheat varieties (Picaflor and Mekelle I) and 0 kg N ha-1 (control). The experiment was laid out as a randomized complete block design in a factorial arrangement with three replications. During both cropping years, increasing the rate of nitrogen application up to 69 kg N ha-1 significantly (P< 0.01) increased the total aboveground biomass and grain yields of the crop and decreased with further increase of applied N fertilizer. The highest aboveground biomass (6871 kg ha-1) and grain yields (2775 kg ha-1) of the crop were obtained in response to the application of 69 kg N ha-1, in 2013. The equivalent value for total aboveground biomass and grain yields during 2014 cropping season were (8815 kg ha-1and 3695 kg ha-1), respectively . The highest apparent recovery efficiency of 75% was obtained in response to the rate of 69 kg N ha-1applied in three splits of 1/4 at planting, ½ at tillering, and 1/4 at anthesis. The equivalent values for the highest apparent recovery was 81% in the 2014 cropping season. The highest agronomic efficiency of 25 kg kg-1 and utilization efficiency of 55 kg kg-1 were recorded at the rate of 46 kg N ha-1 in three splits of 1/4 at planting, ½ at tillering and ¼ at anthesis. The equivalent values in 2014 were 34 kg kg-1 and 78 kg kg-1, respectively. Grain protein concentration increased from 10.57% to 11.82% in 2013 and from 8.97% to 9.84% in 2014 cropping season as the rate increased from 23 kg N ha-1 to 69 kg N ha-1. The acceptable marginal rate of return (1618%) and highest net benefit (34141ETB ha-1) was obtained from 69 kg N ha-1 for the variety Picaflor. In conclusion, applying 69 kg N ha-1 in three splits of ¼ at planting, 1/2 at tillering and ¼ at anthesis resulted in optimum grain yield, protein concentration and economic return of the crop

Network analysis of barley seed flows in Tigray, Ethiopia : Supporting the design of strategies that contribute to on-farm management of plant genetic resources

For maintaining food security and livelihood, farmers in marginal areas of production environments make use of high levels of crop genetic diversity. The exchange of seed and varieties among villagers, and also the relative isolation of local varieties in their production environments, contributes to the continued existence of locally adapted genotypes. In Tigray, one of the major barley-growing regions of Ethiopia, local varieties and local seed systems are dominant. The annual barley seed requirement is met with seed produced, saved and exchanged by farmers. In order to understand the flows of seed and varieties within and between villages, a study was conducted using a survey to gather information from 130 respondents in seven villages. Seed network analysis was used as an analytical tool to assess flows of seed and varieties and to identify farmers who play different roles in the seed system. Within the major seed exchange network, nodal or connector farmers linked seed subnetworks. The flow within villages was much more dominant than beyond. Rare varieties appeared to be sourced from farms that maintain a broad variety portfolio. Varieties seemed to disseminate informally across farms, in their target environments, following participatory varietal selection. The methodology of social seed network analysis proved to be a powerful tool for monitoring seed and variety flows. Furthermore, it identified farmers as critical partners in the conservation and on-farm management of plant genetic resources, recognized the role of plant breeders in participatory varietal selection and that of seed experts, engaged in strengthening local seed supply and in disseminating quality seed of superior varieties