Transcript Regeneration of Natural Pasture in Enclosures for

Regeneration of Natural Pasture in
Enclosures for Parthenium Weed
Management in the Rangeland of
Jigjiga, Somali Regional State,
Ethiopia
BY
Lisanework Nigatu, Tamado Tana and
Hassen Ali
14 July 2014
Nexus Hotel, Addis Ababa
Outline
1. Introduction
1.1. Objectives
2. Study Methods
3.Results and Discussions
4. Conclusions
5. Acknowledgments
1. Introduction
• Parthenium is one of
the most troublesome
weed:
• Invading extensive
natural rangelands and
agricultural fields in
Eastern part of Ethiopia.
• Threatening
biodiversity, natural
resources, human and
animal health
Pathenium Weed Population
1. Introduction Cont….
Invades Cultivated fields
Invading natural rangeland
Area Enclosure as a Management tool
to Combat Parthenium invasion:
1.1. Objectives
• Investigate the species composition
and diversity of the natural pasture,
and
• Evaluate the relationship between
the regeneration of natural pasture
and the soil seed bank flora.
Fig 1. Map of the study area
2. Study Methods:
• The study was conducted in three land use types:
five years enclosures for parthenium
management, twenty years enclosures
(bench mark) and communal grazing
lands.
• Data on herbaceous layer were collected from a
total of 45 quadrats, each 1m × 1m, laid out
randomly in 9 sample sites, each measuring
10m×10m.
2. Study methods cont..
• The data were collected on the regeneration
of herbaceous species and included:
– species composition,
– Diversity and basal cover,
– seedling number and
– age categories
– Data for soil seed bank flora included seedling
density, species composition and diversity
2.Study Methods cont…
•
Soil sample collection for seedbank
study
Soil seedbank flora study in a geen
house
3. Results and discussion
• The study revealed significant (P<0.05)
variation among land use types in grass
species composition, basal cover, age
category, and herbaceous species richness.
• Relatively higher mean values were recorded
for all these parameters in the five year
enclosure land use type and intermediate
value scored in twenty year enclosure
followed by the open grazing land use type.
Table 1. LSM  SE of herbaceous (grass) score species composition, species
richness, basal cover, age distribution, biomass and seedling number of the
land use types.
Land use
Species
Type
composition
Basal cover
( m-2)
Age
Species
Seedling
distribution
richness
number/
(m-2)
Biomass (gm2)
A4
Five-year
enclosure
6.730.17a
72.33 3.15 a
2.130.19a
6.660.38 a
4.600.13 a
795.449.9 a
5.060.26b
64.535.37b
4.460.13 b
5.460.44 b
4.600. 13 a
395.4028.2b
3.730.13c
26.33 1.98 c
1.600.21c
4.660.37 c
4.46 0.13a
121.78.08 c
0.00
0.00
0.00
0.00
NS
Twenty-year
enclosure
Open grazing
land
P in ANOVA
0.00
within a column with different superscript are significantly different at P 
0.05 NS= none significan
abcd Means
3. Result & Discussion Cont…
• A total of 39 herbaceous species were
recorded
in
the
study
sites
of
which14(35.89%) species were grass and
25(64.10%) non-grass species.
• The study revealed that very few grass species
dominated the open grazing land use type
whereas a relatively good proportion of the
important grass species were represented in
both enclosed areas of varying years.
3. Result and Discussion cont…
•
Grass species such as Chrysopogon
aucheri, Cenchurs ciliaris, Cynodon
dactylon, Aristida mutabilis, Digitaria
abyssinicum, Digitaria spp. Hyparrhenia
hirta and Tragus heptahuron occurred
frequently
forming
the
major
constituents of the sites.
•
The grass species composition had
significantly (P<0.05) lower mean score
for open grazing land use followed by
twenty year enclosure (Table 1).
•
Basal cover, age distribution, seedling
number and dry matter biomass grass
species all scored higher in five year
enclosure followed by 25 years
enclosure and communal grazing land
types . respectively
•
Determination of fresh Weight of
Herbaceous Biomass in the Sampled
Plots
3. Results and Discussion cont….
30
%25
of
fam
20
ilies
20
15
10
5.7
5.7 5.7
2.8 2.8
5
2.8
2.8 2.8 2.8 2.8 2.8 2.8 2.8
Figure 10.seedling families
collected from the soil seed
bank
Fabaceae
Lamiaceae
Crassulaceae
CONVOLVULACEAAE
MALVACEA
Ericaceae
Euphorbiacea
SOLANACEAE
PAPIUONOIDEAE
CHENOPPODIACEAE
ASTERACEAE
POACEAE
Rosaceae
Primulaceae
0
ACANTHACEAE
• The soil seed bank study
revealed that a total of 38
species representing 15
families of flowering
plants germinated in the
green house experiment.
• The forbs comprised
63.15%, grass 31.57% &
legumes 5.26%, of the
total germinated plant
species.
34.28
35
3. Results and Discussion cont….
• The most common species in the soil seedbank
were Parthenium hysterophorus Eragrostis spp.
and Chrisopogon aucheri.
• Parthenium hysterophorus accounted for 44.25%
of the total species composition followed by
Eragrostis spp. (16.12%) and Chrysopogon
aucheri (6.6%).
• This result, confirmed that the soil seed bank of
Jigjiga rangeland was dominated by invasive
weed Parthenium hysterophorus
Table 2. Mean SE for the species seedling density of layers
among the three land use types.
Land use type
Layer 1 (0-3 cm)
Layer 2 (3-6 cm) Layer 3 (69cm)
Five year
16.061.28a
6.53.79a
4.00.55a
15.81.99b
5.00.72b
3.93.45 b
7.80.726c
4.26.67c
2.7.26c
enclosure
Twenty year
enclosure
open grazing
land
P in ANOVA
abcde Means
at P < 0.05
0.00
0.00
0.00
within a row with different superscript are significantly different
3. Results and Discussion cont….
• There was significant
(P<0.05) difference in
seedling density and species
composition along land use
type and layers
• The highest seedling
number of the layers was
recorded in five year
enclosure, followed twenty
years enclosure and least
was on the open grazing
Seedling density Count from soil seed bank study
Table 3.Seedling density in m-2 (Mean  SE) of forbs, Grasses and legumes
along soil dept
Layer
Forbs
Grasses
Legumes
Grand Total
0.46 .19a
31.121.36 a
Layer 2(n=45) 13.201.58b 7.8.80 b
0.20.10 b
21.202.48 b
Layer 3(n=45) 9.00.81c
5.7.73 c
0.13 .13c
14.831.67c
P in ANOVA
0.006
0.000
0.000
Layer 1(n=45) 20.13.28a
abcd Means
at P < 0.05
0.000
9.53.89a
within a column with different superscript are significantly different
3. Results and Discussion cont….
• There was significant variation (P<0.05) in forbs,
grasses and legumes seedling density in the soil seed
bank germination between land use types and layers
• The highest herbaceous (forbs, grasses & legumes)
seedling density was recorded from the first layer
followed by second layer and third layer. Seedling
density decreased as the depth of the soil seed bank
increased
• Both enclosures showed the highest seedling density of
herbaceous species (forbs, grasses & legumes) than the
open grazing land use type.
3. Results and Discussion cont….
Similarity between the soil seed bank flora and the standing
vegetation:
• There was lower similarity between species
composition in soil seed bank flora and standing
vegetation (Jaccards similarity index=16%)
• The similarity between species numbers and
composition of the soil seed banks and the above
ground vegetation was low .
• The low similarity was related too many woody
species in above ground vegetation and more
abundance of perennial grasses and annual forbs in
the soil seed bank.
4. Conclusion
• The present study revealed that the two
enclosures land use type in the Jigjiga rangeland
have shown relatively higher level of naturally
regenerating vegetation cover with declining
parthenium weed invasion and soil seed bank
flora.
• Therefore, expansions of enclosure with proper
grazing management options and reseeding of
the enclosures areas with indigenous and
compatible pasture species are recommended for
improvement of the Jigjiga rangeland.
5. Acknowledgements
• USAID through IPM/CRSP- Virginia State
University
• Haramaya University
Thank U !!!