Evaluation of selected semi-dwarf Tef (Eragrostis tef (Zucc.) Trotter) genotypes for yield and yield related traits

Abstract

Tef is the major staple food crop for Ethiopia which is cultivated by more than 6.7 million smallholder farmers. As an indigenous cereal, it is well adapted to diverse climatic and soil conditions; however, its productivity is very low mainly due to susceptibility to lodging. The objective of this study was to identify stable, high yielding and lodging tolerant tef genotypes for moisture stress areas of the country. A total of twenty genotypes including standard and local checks were tested. The field experiment was conducted using a 2m x 2m area with a completely randomized block design at six locations (Debre Zeit, Minjar, Alemtena, Melkassa, Sirinka and Axum) during the 2019 and 2020 main cropping seasons. Data were taken on plot and individual plant basis on eight pheno-agro-morphological characters including days to heading, days to maturity, grain filling period, plant height, panicle length, lodging index, above-ground shoot biomass and grain yield. The combined analysis of variance showed that the mean squares due to genotypes, locations and genotype interactions were highly significant (P<0.01) for the tested eight agronomical and morphological traits evaluated. Based on the current result, 39% of the tested genotypes had a higher yield advantage over the standard check Boset variety. On the other hand, 44% of the genotypes showed higher yields than the local check. Therefore, the promising genotype for lodging tolerance needs further testing in the variety verification trial and those genotypes are used as representative materials to develop varieties, especially for lodging tolerance.