Graduate Thesis Or Dissertation
 

Faidherbia albida Water Use and Impacts on Teff Growth in a Sub-humid Environment in Mojo, Ethiopia

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https://ir.library.oregonstate.edu/concern/graduate_thesis_or_dissertations/n870zv65r

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  • Faidherbia albida is a widely used tree species in sub-Saharan Africa, promoted for use in parkland agroforestry systems based on reduced competition with crops during the rainy season from its reverse leafing phenology and positive effect on soil fertility. Increases in growth and yield have been reported for crops such as maize, millet, and sorghum grown with F. albida. However, there have been no studies on F. albida and the crop Eragrostis tef (teff) in parklands, despite the prevalence of these agroforestry systems in Ethiopia. In the first part of this study, we used sap flow measurements to characterize water use of F. albida from the late-hot season to rainy season in 2014. Peak sap flow density and daily sap flow density were compared across three pollarded and three unpollarded trees to assess water use changes due to the typical management practice of pollarding by smallholder farmers. Pollarding severely reduced water use, while leaf shedding on one unpollarded tree lowered water use to levels close to that of pollarded trees. Lowest sap flow densities occurred at different times during the rainy season between pollarded and unpollarded groups of trees. In the second part of this study, we used measurements of shoot height, leaf area index, δ¹³C, and relative chlorophyll content of teff growing in plots associated with F. albida to characterize the impact of this important tree species on teff, the most widely grown crop in Ethiopia. F. albida negatively impacted shoot height and leaf area index of the teff in close proximity to trees, but had no effect on the teff’s relative chlorophyll content. Leaf δ¹³C, however, decreased with distance from tree base, consistent with increased stress. Understanding tree water use and tree-crop interactions in these systems is needed so land owners can make educated management decisions that will minimize competition and maximize productivity.
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