Abstract
Prior integration of any tree/shrub species in a given land use system, there is always the need of undertaking a field trials to assess their adaptability and growth performance under a particular environment. Study was planned and conducted to evaluate the adaptability potential and growth performance of six nitrogen fixing tree/shrub species in Dello-menna district of Bale zone, southeast Ethiopia. The considered species in the study are Cajanus cajan, Flemingia macrophylla, Gliricidia sepium, Sesbania sesban, Calliandra calothyrsus, and Leucaena leucocephela. Seedlings were produced in a nursery site and transplanted to the experimental site. The experiment was laid out in RCBD design with three replications, and the management practices employed uniformly for each species throughout the stud period. In the study the necessary growth performance data parameters; plant height, root collar diameter and survival rate were measured and recorded. Thereafter, the data was analysed by GenStat (15th ed) and Excel computerized programs. Results obtained showed that, these growth performance data parameters were significantly (p < 0.05) varied among the tested species. In this respect, F. macrophylla, S. sesban, G. sepium and C. cajan attained the higher mean values in survival rate, plant height and root collar diameter. While L. leucocephela and C. calothyrsus attained the lowest mean values for the entire growth performance parameters. Hence, it can be inferred that the study site matched well with the environmental requirement of F. macrophylla, S. sesban, G. sepium and C. cajan. The species therefore offers much promise for future use in any of agroforestry practices in the area. However, evaluation of their contribution to soil fertility improvement and crop yield needs to be further investigated as this may insights to know their nutrient provision potential while integrated together with annual and/or perennial plants in agroforestry land use system.
Highlights
Planted forests are land-use systems composed of trees that are established through planting and managed primarily for the commercial wood productions and climatic regulations (Nambiar, 2003; Free-Smith et al, 2019)
Forest plantation establishment encompass both afforestation and reforestation programs where afforestation involves the direct conversion of land that was not forested for at least 50 years into the forests while the latter involves the establishment of forest in areas that were previously forested before being replaced by other species or clear fell (Dohrenbusch & Bolte, 2014)
Successful plantation establishment is influenced by the quality of the seedlings, specie-site match and the silvicultural management practices
Summary
Understanding the factors that influence seedling survival is a key step in addressing the predominant barriers to forest plantation establishment. Factors Influencing Tree Seedling Survival in Plantation Forestry: A Focus on Sustainable Forest Productivity East African Journal of Forestry and Agroforestry, 3(1), 54-61. N. (2021), “Factors Influencing Tree Seedling Survival in Plantation Forestry: A Focus on Sustainable Forest Productivity”, East African Journal of Forestry and Agroforestry, 3(1), pp. N. Etemesi, “Factors Influencing Tree Seedling Survival in Plantation Forestry: A Focus on Sustainable Forest Productivity”, EAJFA, vol 3, no. MLA CITATION Masaba, Protus Wanjala., & Issa Nduku Etemesi. “Factors Influencing Tree Seedling Survival in Plantation Forestry: A Focus on Sustainable Forest Productivity”.
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