To improve the productivity of the Sahelian pastures, 10 different tree species were introduced and cattle, sheep and goats were allowed to graze. After a year of establishment, survival rate of different species ranged from 6% to 68%. Acacia senegal, Acacia seyal, Acacia nilotica, Combretum aculeata and Prosopis cineraria performed well and the impact of browsing by goats was severe

Connolly, J

Hegde, N G

Nolan, T

Sall, C

English

University of Kentucky

University of Kentucky UKnowledge IGC Proceedings (1997-2023) XVIII IGC (1997) Manitoba & Saskatchewan Introduction of Multipurpose Tree Species for Improving the Productivity of Grasslands in the Tropics N G. Hegde BAIF Development Research Foundation, India C Sall ISRA-LNERV, Senegal T Nolan Teagasc, Ireland J Connolly University College Dublin, Ireland Follow this and additional works at: https://uknowledge.uky.edu/igc  Part of the Agricultural Science Commons, Agronomy and Crop Sciences Commons, Plant Biology Commons, Plant Pathology Commons, Soil Science Commons, and the Weed Science Commons This document is available at https://uknowledge.uky.edu/igc/1997/session6/7 <>Grasslands 2000</> This Event is brought to you for free and open access by the Plant and Soil Sciences at UKnowledge. It has been accepted for inclusion in IGC Proceedings (1997-2023) by an authorized administrator of UKnowledge. For more information, please contact UKnowledge@lsv.uky.edu. Session 6 - Agroforestry 6-35ABSTRACTTo improve the productivity of the Sahelian pastures, 10 differenttree species were introduced and cattle, sheep and goats were allowedto graze. After a year of establishment, survival rate of differentspecies ranged from 6% to 68%. Acacia senegal, Acacia seyal, Acacianilotica, Combretum aculeata and Prosopis cineraria performed welland the impact of browsing by goats was severe.KEYWORDSSahelian pasture, multipurpose tree species, grazing impact, forageproductivity.INTRODUCTIONLivestock is an important source of livelihood in the Sahel. The salientfeatures of livestock husbandry are management of mixed herd andcommunity ownership of the pastures. The pastures in Senegal arecomprised of herbaceous species such as Schoenefeldia gracilis,Ipomea vagans, I. coptia, Corchorus tridens and Merremia pinnataand woody species like Acacia senegal, Acacia raddiana, Balanitesaegyptiaca, Boscia senegalensis, Combretum aculeatum, Calatropisprocera and Grawia bicolor (Nolon et al., 1994).With the increasing population pressure during the last 30 years,overgrazing, felling of trees, shifting cultivation and run-off rainwaterhave increased significantly thereby enhancing deforestation, soilerosion, lowering of water table and reduction in forage yield. Studiesin the tropics have indicated that establishment of Multipurpose TreeSpecies (MPTS) on grasslands can improve the productivity throughsupply of forage, enrichment of soils and improved micro-climate(Hegde, 1995). However, the major challenge is to establish treesunder harsh climate and grazing pressure. Thus the selection of treespecies should be based on their tolerance to drought and bioticpressure. With this background, a study was undertaken to improvethe productivity of pastures in the Sahelian region of Senegal, throughthe introduction of different MPTS. The specific objectives are tostudy the survival of different MPTS, effect of grazing by cattle,sheep and goats on their growth and the impact of trees on forage.METHODSThe field trial was laid out at the Institute Senegalais De RecherchesAgricoles (ISRA) at Dahra in Louga province, in Senegal. The meanannual rainfall at the site is 320 mm, distributed between July andOctober. The soil is sandy. Considering their adaptability in the nativeregion and elsewhere, the species selected for this trial were Acacianilotica, Acacia raddiana, Acacia senegal, Acacia seyal, Bauhiniarufescens, Combretum aculeata, Leucaena leucocephala,Parkinsonia aculeata, Prosopis cineraria and Zizyphus mauritiana.Seeds of Acacia nilotica, Leucaena leucocephala, Parkinsoniaaculeata and Prosopis cineraria were sent from India. Four monthold seedlings were planted in the pasture in September 1995. Thesubplot treatments were to allow different species of livestock tograze at 0, 6, 12 and 18 months after planting the seedlings. Periodicobservations on the survival, height and collar girth of the plantswere recorded. It was too early to observe the impact of differentMPTS on forage yield.ID NO. 169INTRODUCTION OF MULTIPURPOSE TREE SPECIES FOR IMPROVING THEPRODUCTIVITY OF GRASSLANDS IN THE TROPICSN.G. Hegde1 , C. Sall2 , T. Nolan 3  and J. Connolly41  BAIF Development Research Foundation, Pune, INDIA.2  ISRA-LNERV, Dakar-Hann, SENEGAL.3  Teagasc, Athenry, Co. Galway, IRELAND.4  Department of Statistics, University College Dublin, IRELAND.RESULTS AND DISCUSSIONSurvival: The survival of different species after six weeks of plantingranged from 95 to 100%. Subsequently, there was high mortality(Table 1). During the summer, the highest survival of 73.33% wasrecorded by Acacia senegal followed by Acacia raddiana and Acaciaseyal. Least survival of 16.67% was observed in Leucaenaleucocephala followed by Bauhinia rufescens. With further grazing,some species suffered greater mortality. However, some stumps ofAcacia nilotica, Bauhinia rufescens and Combretum aculeata whichappeared dead during the dry season had regenerated after the onsetof rains. After 14 months of planting, the highest survival wasrecorded by A. senegal followed by Combretum aculeata and A. seyal,while the lowest was by Leucaena leucocephala, Parkinsoniaaculeata and Zizyphus mauritiana.The plots grazed zero and six months after planting had lower survivalcompared to control, but the difference in reduction was non-significant. The impact of grazing by goats on survival was high(35.75%), followed by cattle (48.00%) and sheep (58.50%).Plant Growth: After a year of establishment, Prosopis cinerariahad attained maximum height and collar girth. This was followed byParkinsonia aculeata and Bauhinia rufescens for height and Acacianilotica, A. raddiana and Parkinsonia aculeata for collar girth (Table1). Grazing had adverse effect on the growth of MPTS, particularlyon Leucaena leucocephala, C. aculeata and Z. mauritiana. Theadverse impact was prominent in the plots grazed by goats followedby sheep and cattle. It was observed that MPTS seedlings are able towithstand the grazing pressure and compete with the local herbaceousspecies in the Sahelian pastures.Apart from native species such as Acacia senegal, Acacia seyal,Acacia nilotica and Combretum aculeata, newly introduced Prosopiscineraria is performing well. The growth of Parkinsonia aculeata isimpressive, but the survival is poor. Leuceana leucocephala wasadversely affected by drought and browsing. Bauhinia rufescens,Combretum aculeata and Zizyphus mauritiana have goodregeneration capacity in spite of heavy browsing. The observationswill continue for 2-3 years to assess their impact on forageproductivity.ACKNOWLEDGEMENTThe authors are grateful to the European Commission for fundingthis project under CEC-DG XII contract.REFERENCESHegde, N.G. 1995. Sustainable Development of the Sahelian Pasturesin Senegal. Fifth International Rangeland Congress. Proceedings :223-224.Nolan T., C. Connolly, C. Sall, Toure Fall, H. Guerin, T. Diop,M. Diene and P. Mandret. 1994. Overview of work to date in STD1-2. (Unpublished report to CEC) : 5 pp.Session 6 - Agroforestry 6-36PERFORMANCE OF DIFFERENT TREE SPECIESAge After Planting  (Months) Highest LeastSURVIVAL 9 Acacia senegal Leucaena leucocephalaAcacia raddiana Bauhinia rufescensAcacia seyal Combretum aculeata14 Acacia senegal Leucaena leucocephalaCombretum aculeata Prosopis aculeataAcacia seyal Zizyphus mauritianaHEIGHT 9 Acacia nilotica Acacia senegalCombretum aculeata Acacia seyalLeucaena leucocephala Bauhinia rufescens14 Prosopis cineraria Combretum aculeataParkinsonia aculeata Leucaena leucocephalaBauhinia rufescens Zizyphus mauritianaCOLLAR GIRTH 9 Acacia nilotica Bauhinia rufescensPrakinsonia aculeata Zizyphus mauritianaCombretum aculeata Acacia raddiana14 Prosopis cineraria Leucaena leucocephalaAcacia nilotica Zizgphus mauritianaAcacia raddiana Combretum aculeataTable 1Survival and growth of multipurpose tree species (MPTS) at Dahra, SenegalSR. NO SPECIES      SURVIVAL (%)        HEIGHT (CM) COLLAR GIRTH (CM)JUNE 96 OCT. 96 JUNE 96 OCT. 96 JUNE 96 OCT. 96Acacia nilotica 45.82 59.17 83.25 59.28 0.964 1.009Acacia raddiana 66.67 56.67 40.53 51.33 0.557 0.953Acacia senegal 73.33 68.33 32.61 55.10 0.609 0.787Acacia seyal 65.83 61.67 33.89 62.59 0.639 0.702Bauhinia rufescens 38.33 44.17 36.09 65.30 0.499 0.715Combretum aculeata 57.50 64.17 59.90 38.92 0.770 0.492Leucaena leucocephala 16.67 6.67 50.24 41.14 0.667 0.400Parkinsonia aculeata 55.83 20.83 40.16 83.87 0.824 0.927Prosopis cineraria 60.83 52.50 42.44 84.03 0.582 1.053Zizyphus mauritiana 51.67 40.00 50.16 43.78 0.528 0.421PREFERENCE  OF  LIVESTOCK  FOR  MPTSSpecies Preference for BrowsingCattle Sheep GoatsAcacia senegal   *   ** ***Acacia nilotica   ***   ** ***Acacia seyal   *  *** ***Acacia raddiana  **   **   **Bauhinia rufescens ***  *** ***Combretum aculeata  ***  ***  ***Leucaena leucocephala  ***  ***  **Prosopis cineraria  ***  *** ***Parkinsonia aculeata    *   *   *Zizyphus mauritiana    *   **  **Indicator  :   Heavy preference  - ***,  Normal preference  -  **,Poor preference   -  *.

Introduction of Multipurpose Tree Species for Improving the Productivity of Grasslands in the Tropics

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Introduction of Multipurpose Tree Species for Improving the Productivity of Grasslands in the Tropics

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