Weed Species Dominance and Abundance in Tea (<i>Camellia sinensis</i> L.) Plantation of Southwest Ethiopia

Abstract

Tea (<i>Camellia sinensis</i> L.) is one of the most popular beverage crops. Among tea production constraints, weed is one of the detrimental factors in tea productions in Ethiopia. For the possibility of developing weed management method determining the dominant and abundant weed species is highly important to identify and prioritize the most noxious and prevalent weed that associated with tea production in the country. Weed flora survey was conducted in two different tea estate farms Wushwush and Gumero tea plantations in 2019/20 cropping seasons. The field survey was done according to the quantitative survey method by using 1m² quadrate size. Weeds present in each quadrate were counted and identified to species level. Weed abundance, dominance, frequency and similarity index was determined at two tea producing locations. A total of 63 weed species were identified from assessed tea plantation farms. The result revealed that 61.3% and 71.9% of broad leaf weed was recorded at Wushwush and Gumaro tea plantation, respectively. Only, two (6.5%) parasitic weed species were recorded at Wushwush. The most prevalent and abundant weed species at Wushwush was <i>Ageratum conyzoides</i> followed by <i>Hydrocotyle americana</i>, whereas, <i>H. americana</i> was the most dominant species at Gumero tea plantation. Generally, from survey results, the weed flora composition was similar in both assessed areas, as its similarity index resulted above 70%. Hence, similar weed management methods should be recommended for both locations.