Effect Of Grazing Land Improvement Practices On Herbaceous Production, Grazing Capacity And Their Economics: Ejere District, Ethiopia
Abstract
The effects of different grazing land improvement practices on herbaceous production, grazing capacities and their economics were studied in Ejere district, west Shoa zone, Ethiopia. Four different treatments, i.e., application of Urea and Diammonium phosphate (DAP), cattle manure, wooden ash, and a control/no application) were randomly applied to the study plots in three replications for each treatment. All experimental plots were fenced throughout the study period. The application of urea and DAP significantly increased grass (3620.86 kg ha-1) and total biomass production (5742.93 kg ha-1). Of the 6 herbaceous species recorded in the Urea and DAP plots, four of them were grasses with Setaria verticellata having the highest percentage composition (35.54%) while the control plot was dominated by Cyperus rotundus (31.5%) and Cerastium octandrum (31.5%). Less land is required to maintain a tropical livestock unit (TLU) in Urea and DAP applied plots (0.03 ha TLU-1) than in plots applied with other treatments (mean = 0.09 ha TLU-1). Similar to the result of the biological data, t he participants of the grassland day rated the Urea and DAP applied treatment best because of the high production of grass. Considering total biomass production, application of manure was advantageous to the farmers due to increased net benefits and the marginal rate of return is above the minimum acceptable rate for this sort of treatment. On the other hand, considering grass production alone, application of Urea and DAP was more profitable for farmers as far as they store and sell it in the dry seasons . In conclusion, we recommend a long -term study to examine the effects of the different treatments on productivity of grazing lands, herbaceous species composition, grazing capacities, livestock, the environment, and their economics.
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Introduction
Ethiopia holds the largest livestock population in Africa estimated at about 54 million heads of cattle, 25.5 million sheep, 24.06 million goats, 0.92 million camels, 4.5 million donkeys, 1.7 million horses, 0.33 million mules, 54 million chicken and 4.9 million beehives [1]. It is also among the 28 smaller countries (25 in Africa) where grazing land accounts greater than 60% of the total land area [2]. Despite these huge resources, the productivity of livestock in general is low and its contribution to the national economy is below expected. Among the major problems affecting livestock production and productivity in Ethiopia, feed shortage in terms of quantity and quality is the leading problem [1].
The major feed resources in Ethiopia are natural pasture (grasslands) and crop residues with varying proportion among the different zones of the country. Similar to the other parts of Ethiopia, the role of grazing lands as a major livestock feed resources is diminishing from time to time because of natural and human induced factors (increased conversion of grazing lands to crop land) which created heavy grazing pressure on the remaining grazing lands although the extent of degradation varies from site to site [4, 5, 6]. In addition, g razing land improvement practices are relatively less common particularly in the highlands of Ethiopia owing to the lack of awareness and appropriate training, lack of appropriate improvement methods and little attention given to grazing lands by the agricultural extension system. The pressure is likely to intensify in the coming decades creating more pressure on the remaining grazing lands justifying the need to improve the available remaining grazing lands to increase their livestock ho lding capacity [1]. Thus, the current study examined the effect of applying different grazing land improvement techniques on biomass production and herbaceous species composition, grazing capacities of the grazing lands and the economics of the different treatments. This paper will contribute to better
understanding of grazing land rehabilitation techniques in Ethiopia and for similar ecosystem elsewhere.
Conclusion
The study revealed local wooden ash, cow manure, urea with DAP applications improved total biomass production. Further long-term study is required to examine the effects of the different treatments on productivity of grazing lands, livestock productivity, soil and plant nutrients and economic considerations.