Research Article
Austin J Plant Bio. 2024; 10(1): 1044.
Performance Evaluation of Groundnut Varieties Under Agro Ecologies of Guji Zone, Southern Ethiopia
Belachew Dabalo*; Deresa Shumi; Tekalign Afeta; Rehobot Niguse
Oromia Agricultural Research Institute, Bore Agricultural Research Center, Pulse Crops Research, P.O. Box 21, Bore, Ethiopia
*Corresponding author: Belachew Dabalo Oromia Agricultural Research Institute, Bore Agricultural Research Center, Crop Protection Research, PO Box 21, Bore, Ethiopia Email: [email protected]
Received: December 16, 2023 Accepted: January 26, 2024 Published: Februzry 02, 2024
Abstract
Groundnut is one of the three economically important oilseeds grown in Ethiopia. This crop is usually grown as a food crop and a cash crop by smallholder farmers in the study area. The area has potential to the production of Ground nut for food and nutrition security as well as export. However, the lack of environmentally suitable varieties is one of the biggest obstacles to production. To this end, the experiment was conducted in three districts Adola Redde, Oddo Shakiso and Goro dola and two kebeles from each district but because of security problems only one kebele was selected at Goro dola. The objective of the study was to evaluate and identify the adaptable, best performing variety in agronomic traits and high yielding at study area. Ten improved groundnut varieties were evaluated using a randomized complete block design with three replications. Combined analysis of variance showed existence of statistically significant differences (P<0.01) among varieties for all traits except plant height. Sedi and Werer 961 were the earliest to maturity while Baha-gidu and Tole-1 were late matured varieties. The average kernel yield of overall locations ranged from the lowest of 1211 kg ha-1 for Fayo variety to the highest of 2317kg ha-1 for Babile-1 variety. Baha-gudo and Tole-1 were the two highest varieties in hundred seed weight but Sedi was the lowest in hundred seed weight. Babile-1 variety was the top-ranking variety to overall farmer’s field followed by Werer-961 and Baha-gudo. Therefore, Babile-1, Werer-961 and Baha-gudo were identified as the best varieties to be demonstrated and popularized in the study areas and other similar agro-ecologies in respective order.
Keywords: Adaptability; Agronomic trait; High yielding; Varieties
Introduction
Groundnut (Arachis hypogaea L.), also referred to as peanut, earthnut, or monkey-nut, is an annual herbaceous crop that is self-pollinating and indeterminate [1]. It is one of the most important oilseed crops in the world (Upadhyaya et al., 2010) and ranked as the fourth most important oilseed crop and the thirteenth most important food crop (Surendranatha et al., 2011). Its seeds contain approximately of 50% edible oil, with the remaining 50% containing high-quality protein (36.4%), carbohydrates in the range of 6–24.9%, minerals, and vitamins [3]. Nuts can be eaten raw, roasted, or boiled, while the oil extracted from the seeds is used for culinary purposes. It also generates significant cash income for a number of small-scale producers and foreign exchange.
Moreover, it serves as an industrial raw material and animal feed [14]. Because groundnuts are legumes, they fix atmospheric nitrogen in soils, increasing soil fertility and reducing the need for fertilizer in ensuing crops. This is especially crucial in light of the growing cost of chemical fertilizers, which makes it harder for small-scale farmers to afford them (Simtowe et al., nd).
From 26.4 million hectares of producing area, the globe produced about 38.2 million tons of groundnuts annually. One of the five oil-seed crops that are commonly grown in Ethiopia is groundnut (Gezahagn, 2013). This crop is mostly grown by the traditional farming population in rain-fed environments. According to CSA (2018), the estimated gross annual output in Ethiopia was 1,451,728.20 quintals, equating to an area of around 80,841.57 hectares. Oromia region (41,089 ha) is Ethiopia's largest groundnut producing region, with Benshangul-Gumuz (14,759 ha) and Amhara (3,161 ha) regional states following [15]. In some areas of western Ethiopia, groundnut is cultivated in both the main season (June) and the "Belg" season (March).
Ethiopia's groundnut production is significantly lower than the global average (1.52 ton ha-1) at less than 1.1 tons ha-1. Ethiopia has a very low seed yield, according to Amare (1987) and EARO (2000). The primary causes of this poor yield include a lack of high-yielding varieties, insufficient soil fertility, and restricted access to outside inputs.
Improved groundnut varieties are not yet being produced in the zones' potential locations, especially in the Guji zone, even though the area's soil type and weather are ideal for producing groundnuts. As a result, one of the main causes of the low yield level in the research area is the absence of high yielding and stable varieties. Therefore, it is imperative to introduce the improved variety to the zones' prospective areas. Thus, the objective of this study was to identify adaptable and high yielding improved groundnut varieties that are appropriate for the midlands to low-altitude areas of Guji zones.
Material and Methods
The test was carried out in the potential producing areas of Guji zone at Oddo Shakkiso in two kebeles' (Banti-korbo and Diba-bate), Goro-dola in one kebele (Sirba) and Adola Rede in two kebeles' (Dole and Kiltu-sorsa) during 2019 cropping season. A total of ten (10) improved groundnut varieties were evaluated for the study. It was arranged in randomized complete block design with three replications at all locations. Each entry consisted of four rows of 3m length with 60cm between rows and 10cm between plants. To reduce border effect, data was taken from the central two rows. Weeding and other management practices were done as required. Fertilizer was applied at the rate of 121kg NPS per hectare at the time of planting.
Data Collection and Analysis
Data were recorded on days to 50% flowering, number of branches, plant height (cm), days to maturity, numbers of matured pods per plant, numbers of seeds per pod, 100- seed weight (g) and kernel yield (kg/ha). The unshelled pods were sun dried for two weeks and shelled to estimate kernel yield. The analysis of variance for each location and combined analysis of variance over locations were computed using the SAS program (SAS institute, 2011) versions 9.3. The significance of mean differences was tested by Least Significant Difference (LSD) as stated in Gomez and Gomez (1984).
Results and Discussions
Combined Analysis of Variance
Pooled analysis of variance showed highly significant differences (P<0.01) among varieties for days to flowering, days to maturity, NSPP, HSW (g) and KY except plant height. There were also observed significant variations (P<0.05) in NB and NPPP. Similar result was reported by Ejigu et al. (2020) and Biru and Darajje (2014) who stated days to flowering, days to maturity, number of branches, NPPP, NSPP, HSW(g) and KY but in contrary to this result plant height has significant variation among varieties according to these scholars.
Mean Performances of Agronomic Traits of Groundnut Varieties
The analysis of variances revealed that there is significant variation in important traits among varieties except plant height which is statistically non-significant. According to this finding, the minimum number of days to flowering was recorded on the variety, sedi (43.67 days) which is statistically similar with werer 961 variety (44 days) followed by Fayo (45 days) whereas Roba, Babile-2, Baha-gidu and Tole-1 required maximum days to flowering (Table 2).
Source of variation
d.f
Mean Squares
DF
DM
PH
NB
NPPP
NSPP
HSW(g)
KY
Replication
2
0.07
6.06
10.64
5.55
64.00
0.24
6.40
631277
Variety
9
156.76**
19.13**
3.29ns
91.29*
176.00*
0.77**
1084.39**
2320765**
Error
138
1.26
1.52
13.40
39.62
102.70
0.10
8.25
378003
Total
149
Where, ns: Not Significant at P<0.05, * significant at P<0.05; ** significant at P<0.001 probability level; df: Degree of Freedom; CV: Coefficient of Variance; DF50%: Days to 50% Flowering; DM: Days to 90% Maturity; PH: Plant Height (cm); NB: Number of Branches; NPPP: Number of Pods Per Plant; NSPP: Number of Seeds Per Pod; HSW (g): Hundred Seed Weight; KY: Kernel Yield.
Table 1: Mean squares from combined analysis of variance over five locations for agronomic traits and kernel yield during 2019.
No
Variety
Parameters
DF
DM
PH (cm)
NB
NPPP
NSPP
HSW(g)
1
Roba
55.00a
165.0b
26.80
16.92a
21.25a-c
2.08d
61.00c
2
Baha-gudo
46.67b
164.7b
24.92
12.14a-c
20.64a-c
2.00d
85.33a
3
Werer961
44.00d
161.7c
24.64
7.14bc
32.94a
2.50bc
44.00d
4
Babile-1
45.67bc
164.3b
25.61
8.61a-c
31.00ab
2.08d
79.00b
5
Babile-2
55.00a
165.0b
25.53
16.16a
25.22a-c
2.00d
78.33b
6
Baha-gidu
55.00a
166.7a
24.95
14.81a-c
25.44a-c
2.00d
59.00c
7
Sedi
43.67d
161.0c
24.72
6.53c
22.39a-c
3.08a
33.00e
8
Tole1
55.00a
166.0ab
26.03
15.08ab
14.94c
2.17cd
83.67a
9
Fayo
45.00cd
165.0b
26.30
8.47a-c
23.75a-c
2.50bc
48.33d
10
Nc-4x
46.67b
165.3ab
24.92
12.86a-c
18.58bc
2.58b
45.33d
Mean
49.17
164.47
25.44
11.87
23.62
2.30
61.80
LSD (0.05)
1.359
1.493
ns
7.307
11.762
0.363
4.928
CV (%)
2.3
0.7
14.4
53.0
32.9
13.6
Means assigned with the same letter shows no significant difference among them. LSD: Least Significant Difference; CV: Coefficient of Variation; DF50%: Days to 50% Flowering; DM: Days to 90% Maturity; PH: Plant Height (cm); NB: Number of Branches; NPPP: Number of Pods Per Plant; NSPP: Number of Seeds Per Pod; HSW (g): Hundred Seed Weight.
Table 2: Combined mean performance of agronomic traits and yield components of groundnut varieties at five locations.
Treatments
Locations
combined
MeanRank
Diba Bate
Banti-korbo
Sirba
Dole
Kiltu-sorsa
Roba
1580a-c
1449b-d
931
1174cd
1625c
1352cd
7
Baha-gudo
2051a
2104ab
1826
1319c
3000ab
2060ab
3
Werer-96
1906ab
2521a
1340
2444b
2139bc
2070ab
2
Babile-1
2198a
1806a-c
1764
2444b
3375a
2317a
1
Babile-2
2149a
2097ab
1531
1035cd
2007c
1764bc
5
Baha-gidu
1851ab
2292ab
1427
1417c
2146bc
1826a-c
4
Sedi
927cd
1917ab
913
3090a
1528c
1675b-d
6
Tole-1
1118b-d
1410b-d
1288
757d
1729c
1260d
8
Fayo
892cd
615d
1264
1500c
1785c
1211d
10
Nc-4x
587d
868cd
1403
1208cd
2174bc
1248d
9
Mean
1525.97
1707.78
1368.75
1638.89
2150.69
1678.417
P-value
0.001
0.001
0.08
0.001
0.004
<.001
LSD (0.05)
696.87
661.44
587.39
451.49
839.92
443.91
CV (%)
26.6
22.6
25.0
16.1
22.7
36.6
Means assigned with the same letter shows no significant differences. LSD: Least Significant Difference; CV: Coefficient of Variation
Table 3: Mean Kernel yield (kg ha-1) of groundnut varieties at five locations and combined mean during 2019 and their rank on yield performance.
Mean performance of varieties in days to maturity ranged from 161 (sedi) - 166.7 (Baha-gidu) (Table 2). Mean performance of varieties in plant height showed no significant variations among varieties. Varieties showed considerable variation in number of branches, number of pods per plant and hundred seed weight which was similar to the finding of Ejigu et al. (2020) and Chavadhari et al. (2017). Wedajo and Wondewosen (2017) also reported the same finding to this result that there were significant variations among varieties in the selected agronomic traits.
Mean Yield Performances of Groundnut Varieties
The analysis of variance revealed that there was highly significant difference (p<0.01) among varieties in mean kernel yield. Mean performance of varieties for kernel yield ranged from 1211-2317Kg/ha. The significantly highest kernel yield (2317kg) was recorded on the variety Babile-1 followed by Werer-96 (2070kg/ha) which was statistically similar with variety Baha- gudo (2060kg/ha) whereas the significantly lowest kernel yield was observed on the variety Fayo (1211kg/ha). This result was concurrent with Habte et al. (2020) who reported that there were significant variations among varieties in kernel yield. Biru and Darajje (2014) also reported the same finding in that significant variation among varieties in kernel yield was recorded. Moreover, Ejigu et al. (2020) and Wedajo and Wondewosen (2017) stated the existence of the genetic variability of different varieties in their yielding potentials.
Conclusion and Recommendation
The experiment was conducted in three districts Adola Redde (Dole and Kiltu-sorsa Kebeles), Oddo Shakiso (Diba Bate and Banti-korbo Kebeles) and Goro dola (Sirba Kebele) at five locations (Kebeles). In the present study, ten improved varieties of ground nut in randomized complete block design with three replications were used. Generally, the study entails the significant variations among ground nut varieties. The results revealed that Baile-1 (2317 kg/ha) variety was ranked first in kernel yield and Werer-961 (2070 kg/ha) was ranked second whereas Baha-gudo (2060 kg/ha) was ranked on the third. The varieties Sedi and Werer-961 were relatively early matured varieties since behaving the lowest number of days required to flowering and maturity Whereas Babile-1 and Baha-gudo were observed medium matured varieties with better agronomic performances in the study area.
The high yielding potential of the varieties may be on account of having good performances in pods per plant, number of primary branches, and number of seeds per pod and also seed quality (hundred seed weghit) existed in Babile-1, Werer-961 and Baha-gudo. Moreover, the present study indicated that good phonological traits and high yielding performances were recorded in the variety Babile-1 followed by Werer-961 and Baha-gudo. Therefore, these varieties were selected as the best performing varieties recommended for the farmers around the study area and similar agro ecologies.
Author Statements
Acknowledgment
The authors would like to acknowledge Oromia Agricultural Research Institute (OARI) for funding the project "Performance evaluation of groundnut varieties under agro ecology of Guji Zone, Southern Oromia". We would like to thanks Bore Agricultural Research Center for facilitating the working conditions throughout the research period. We are thankful to Pulses and Oil crops staff members for their unconditional efforts in field trail management and data collection during the experimental period.
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