Enset (Ensete ventricosum (Welw.) Cheesman) kocho yield under different crop establishment methods as compared to yields of other carbohydrate-rich food crops

Abstract

The kocho yield of enset, in terms of weight and energy, under different crop establishment methods, was investigated at Areka Research Centre, southern Ethiopia, and compared with the yields of other main starch crops grown in the country. The maximum fresh weights of kocho after fermentation from enset plants transplanted once (Tl), twice (T2) or thrice (D) were 25.9,54.1 and 37.1 kg plant-I, respectively. When yield was expressed per unit of space and time, the maximum fresh yields of fermented kocho (70% moisture) from Tl, T2 and D were 19,33 and 26 t ha-I )'1, respectively.The kocho yield of enset per unit space and time, in terms of edible dry weight and energy, was much higher than the yields of any other crop cultivated in Ethiopia. Second to enset, the root and tuber crops also produced high yields of dry matter and energy. The cultivation of enset and root and tuber crops in densely populated areas under low input conditions can sustain the population better than that of other crops. Moreover, enset produces various byproducts and the prolonged presence of a closed canopy has an ecological advantage similar to that of forest.

Home garden system dynamics in Southern Ethiopia

“…The advantage of combining crop and livestock activities in the traditional systems was related to the availability of cheap fodder for livestock, such as enset leaves, and of animal manure, contributing to enset and coffee growth. In the traditional home gardens, livestock also played a critical role in providing a protein and nutrient rich diet to the household, given the low nutritious value of enset (Brandt et al 1997;Tsegaye and Struik 2001). The transition towards khat cultivation reduced herd sizes due to decreased fodder availability, especially from enset, and also lowered the interest in livestock rearing as a source of cash and manure.…”

“…4). Enset leaves have a high protein content (Brandt et al 1997;Tsegaye and Struik 2001;Solomon et al 2008) and a feeding value that is comparable to a good quality grass (Fekadu and Ledin 1997). Similarly, Kandari et al (2014) reported a decline in per capita herd size following complete replacement of major fodder crops by khat in Harar region of eastern Ethiopia.…”

“…Increasing population pressure and subdivision of farms have led to fragmentation of land, a decline in the area under coffee and enset (Tsegaye and Struik 2001;Abebe 2005) and gradual replacement of the age-old diverse system. A major change is the expansion of a mono-cropping system of khat (Catha edulis Forsk) at the expense of enset-coffee home gardens (Tsegaye and Struik 2001;Abebe et al 2010).…”

“…A major change is the expansion of a mono-cropping system of khat (Catha edulis Forsk) at the expense of enset-coffee home gardens (Tsegaye and Struik 2001;Abebe et al 2010). Khat is grown for its economically important leaves and tender twigs, which are chewed for their stimulating effect.…”

“…In countries like Ethiopia, where smallholder farmers have no access to insurance, the market dependency increases the vulnerability to economic or environmental shocks. The replacement of enset has also induced a shortage of livestock feed with direct repercussions on herd size, herd composition, livestock production and hence, nutritional quality of human diets (Tsegaye and Struik 2001). Most studies on the home gardens of southern Ethiopia claimed that expansion of khat has resulted in homogenization of the structure and composition of the traditional land use systems (Abebe et al 2010;Dessie and Kinlund 2008).…”