Morphological Variation and Inter-Relationships of Quantitative Traits in Enset (Ensete ventricosum (welw.) Cheesman) Germplasm from South and South-Western Ethiopia.

Zerihun Yemataw,David Studholme,Murray Grant,Alemayehu Chala,Kassahun Tesfaye,Daniel Ambachew

doi:10.3390/plants6040056

Abstract

Enset (Ensete ventricosum (Welw.) Cheesman) is Ethiopia’s most important root crop. A total of 387 accessions collected from nine different regions of Ethiopia were evaluated for 15 quantitative traits at Areka Agricultural Research Centre to determine the extent and pattern of distribution of morphological variation. The variations among the accessions and regions were significant (p ≤ 0.01) for all the 15 traits studied. Mean for plant height, central shoot weight before grating, and fermented squeezed kocho yield per hectare per year showed regional variation along an altitude gradient and across cultural differences related to the origin of the collection. Furthermore, there were significant correlations among most of the characters. This included the correlation among agronomic characteristics of primary interest in enset breeding such as plant height, pseudostem height, and fermented squeezed kocho yield per hectare per year. Altitude of the collection sites also significantly impacted the various characteristics studied. These results reveal the existence of significant phenotypic variations among the 387 accessions as a whole. Regional differentiations were also evident among the accessions. The implication of the current results for plant breeding, germplasm collection, and in situ and ex situ genetic resource conservation are discussed.

Highlights

In Ethiopia, the enset-based farming system is a major agricultural system that serves at least one-fifth of country’s population
Plant height, pseudostem circumference, corm weight before grating, leaf sheath number in accessions versus controls, and pseudostem circumference in controls were not significant (Table 1). These data indicate a high level of morphological variation in Ethiopian enset landraces within each region that could be exploited through breeding programmes (Figure 1)
The detected morphological variation in enset landraces is strongly influenced by environmental factors

Summary

Introduction

In Ethiopia, the enset-based farming system is a major agricultural system that serves at least one-fifth of country’s population. Enset (Ensete ventricosum (Welw.) Cheesman) is the only species of the genus Ensete that is cultivated and consumed as a crop [7] It belongs to the family Musaceae and is a giant herbaceous monocotyledonous plant consisting of an adventitious root system and underground stem structure known as corm, a pseudostem which is formed from leaf sheaths that extend from the base of the plant, leaves, and inflorescence [8]. Ethiopia is both the center of origin and center of diversity for enset [8]. Enset cultivation has been largely confined to Ethiopia, and genetic improvement of this crop is entirely dependent upon characterization and exploitation of Ethiopian germplasm resources

Methods

Results

Conclusion