Teff in Southern Ethiopia. Effect of Seed Rates and Sowing Methods on Phenology

Scientific Essay from the year 2021 in the subject Agrarian Studies, grade: 1, course: Agriculture, language: English, abstract: Teff is a major staple cereal crop in Ethiopia. The need for its production as a staple food is increasing from year to year; however, its productivity is limited, amongst others, by the use of improper sowing methods and inappropriate seed rates. These effects were examined in this present study. Row planting and optimizing seed rate should be in place to increase the productivity of the crop. A field experiment was conducted at Wolaita Sodo Agricultural College Farm, during the 2018/19 main cropping season under rain-fed condition, with the objective of evaluating the response of teff to seeding rates and sowing methods on phenology, growth, yield components and yield of teff. Factorial combinations of two sowing methods (Row and broadcast) and five seeding rates were laid out in a randomized complete block design with three replications. Data related to phenology, growth, yield and yield attributes, were collected and analyzed using Gestate software. Plant parameters such as days to panicle emergence, lodging %, number of total and effect tillers per plant and grain yield were significantly affected by the interaction effect of sowing methods and seed rates. Plots sown with low seeding rate combined with row planting gave high grain yield. Therefore, using treatment combinations of seeding rate of 2.5 kg ha-1 together with the row planting can be advised for teff production in the study area. However, repeated experiment over different soil type, seasons and locations necessitates for conclusive recommendation.