Nitrogen is the most limiting nutrient in the production of maize in western Ethiopia with its favourable climate for this crop. This is because Nitisols inherently low in N are used for maize production by resource-poor farmers who cannot afford fertilizer application. ,An option in combating this constraint is planting of maize genotypes that are efficient in N use. Experiments were therefore conducted to evaluate different maize genotypes for grain yield, N uptake and use efficiency at five sites. At each site two experiments, viz. one with open-pollinated genotypes and the other with hybrid genotypes were laid out in a randomized complete block design with three replications. In each of these experiments either five open-pollinated genotypes or five hybrid genotypes were combined in complete factorial arrangement with six N fertilization levels ranging from 0 to 230 kg ha-1 at 46 kg intervals. The results indicated that only two genotypes qualified as N use efficient, viz. the open-pollinated Ecaval 1 and the hybrid CML373/CML202/CML384. On average they outyielded their respective local genotypes by 5.9% at a low N application and by 17.5% at a high N application. Both genotypes also showed consistently higher N agronomic efficiency, N recovery efficiency and N physiological efficiency at low and high N applications. The introduction of these two N use efficient genotypes into the farming systems of the resourcepoor farmers could be beneficial to them.

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Maize production in Western Ethiopia is constrained by non-sustainable cropping practices, particularly repeated conventional tillage and insufficient N fertilization. A change in these cropping practices have usually a profound influence on soil chemical properties of which some may affect crop performance. Field trials were therefore conducted to determine the integrated effects of tillage system and nitrogen fertilization on the pH, extractable phosphorus and exchangeable K of Nitisols at five sites using maize as test crop from 2000 to 2004 in Western Ethiopia. Three tillage systems (MTRR = minimum tillage with residue retention, MTRV = minimum tillage with residue removal and CT = conventional tillage) and three N levels (the recommended rate and 25% less and 25% more than this rate) were combined in factorial arrangement with three replications. After five years the influence of the tillage systems on pH, extractable P and exchangeable K was confined to the upper 0-7.5 cm. The soil was acidified much more with MTRR than with either MTRV or CT. However, MTRR resulted in higher contents of extractable P and exchangeable K than MTRV and CT. Application of N fertilization for five consecutive years significantly decreased pH irrespective of tillage system. Neither extractable P nor exchangeable K were affected by N fertilization. The enhanced soil acidification that coincides with MTRR may impact negatively on maize production in the long run without a proper liming program. Liming is currently not a common practice in Western Ethiopia because of resource poor farmers. This aspect should be taken into account when the replacement of CT with MTRR is recommended. The findings of this study could be useful to other highland regions in Africa where cropping on Nitisols is common.