Bikila Mengistu - Academia.edu (original) (raw)
Papers by Bikila Mengistu
International Journal of Agricultural Research, Innovation and Technology, Aug 21, 2023
Moringa is a tree with medicinal, nutritional, industrial, and socio-economic values. Moringa lea... more Moringa is a tree with medicinal, nutritional, industrial, and socio-economic values. Moringa leaf extracts have potential antihypertensive, antispasmodic, antiulcer, diuretic, hepato-protective and cholesterol-lowering activities. The study was conducted to analyze the nutritional quality of different moringa provenances and to promote the best provenances for the end users. Field experiments were conducted in Goro and Dallo Mena districts of Bale located in Oromia regional state of Ethiopia. Collected samples were airdried at room temperature and milled for laboratory analysis. According to this study growing environment did not bring significant variation (P>0.05) in average mineral contents like Mg, Zn, P and CP content of the provenances. But significantly higher (P<0.05) Na, K, and Ca were recorded for the samples collected from Dallo Mena district, whereas higher Ash and Fe content was recorded in Goro district. On the other hand, provenance from Dallo Mena and Bako is superior to most of the quality characters analyzed. However, the one from Arbaminch is higher in Na and Zn contents. Provenance from Abay Filiklik is higher in Ash, K and P content. Moringa leaf is rich in Ash, Zn, Cp, and Mg to the sufficient level, while Fe, Ca and P are to the level of high or double to triple to the optimum level when compared to the optimum nutrient content of plant material. Generally, higher mean and individual chemical quality values were recorded from provenances grown in Dallo Mena district except for K, Fe, Zn, and CP, which are higher in Goro.
World Journal of Agricultural Science and Technology, Apr 17, 2024
Agroforestry parklands are playing an important role, through trees and shrubs providing multiple... more Agroforestry parklands are playing an important role, through trees and shrubs providing multiple products and important long-term ecological benefits. Purposive sampling methods were applied to select districts, PAs and farmers which mostly used parkland agroforestry practices. Based on information delivered from informal assessment result, formal survey was done with selected 84 HHHs (sample size) for the study purposes. Based on the existences of long lived parkland agroforestry practice and associated challenges four PAs from Ginir and Goro districts of Bale Zones were selected purposively with assistance of district agriculture office expertise and DAs. Survey results showed the presence of 17 woody species of trees and shrubs representing eleven (11) families at the study areas. Of seventeen (17) woody plant species retained/planted and managed on parklands, 82.4% were native. Fabaceae was the most dominant woody species family which accounted about 41.2% of the total number of species recorded. The Croton macrostachyus Hochst., Faidherbia albida, Cordia africana Lam., Acacia abyssinica Hochst., Junperus procera Hochst and Acacia species were the most frequently observed multipurpose woody species in the study area. Almost all of the respondents did practise different types of management activities or practices for the woody species they owned in parkland of the study areas. This finding revealed that pollarding (33.45%), coppicing (21.08%), branch pruning (35.56) and the rest thinning and protection woody species management practices were applied to the scattered trees on croplands of the study areas. On other side, respondents stated that the major challenges for the improvement of parkland agroforestry practices in the study area were instability of rain fail or drought (34.52%) and shortage of farmlands (21.43%). The finding of this study showed that agricultural landscapes (Parkland agroforestery practices) were the home/host of reasonable number of native woody species flora conservation or it's almost the remnants of the natural vegetation. Therefore, further need for more comprehensive analysis of the multiple benefits and services provided by parkland trees located on farmlands or the interaction effects of the agroforestery components on soil fertility improvement, crop yields and quality in the future.
American Journal of Agriculture and Forestry, 2021
Prior integration of any tree/shrub species in a given land use system there is always the need o... more Prior integration of any tree/shrub species in a given land use system there is always the need of undertaking a field trials for the adaptability and growth performance evaluation for particular environment. Study was designed and conducted to evaluate the adaptability potential and growth performance of six nitrogen fixing tree/shrub species in Dello-menna district of Bale zone, southeast Ethiopia. The considered species in the study are Cajanus cajan, Flemingya macrophylla, Gliricidia sepium, Sesbania sesban, Calliandra calothyrsus and Leucaena leucocephela. Seedlings were produced in a nursery site and transplanted to the experimental site. The experiment was laid out in RCBD design with three replications, and the management practices employed uniformly for each species throughout the stud period. In the study the necessary growth performance data parameters; plant height, root collar diameter and survival rate were measured and recorded. Thereafter, the data was analyzed by Ge...
Carbon sequestration is the process through which carbon dioxide is absorbed by plants and stored... more Carbon sequestration is the process through which carbon dioxide is absorbed by plants and stored as carbon in biomass and soil. Agroforestry systems have larger chances to sequester Carbon in the long-term, adding aboveground carbon storage capacity through a broader diversity of living forms, including trees and crops (Murthy et al., 2013). The study was conducted in Dallo Mena districts of Bale located in Oromia regional state of Ethiopia. Therefore, this study aims to estimate the amount of carbon stored in agroforestry, and to compare the potential of agroforestry practices with the other common land uses. Based on this study there is significant difference in mean total carbon stock in the three pools among land uses. From all systems the highest total carbon stock were recorded in Natural forest (426.54±95.51 Mg ha -1 ) followed by shade grown coffee agroforestry (266.61±56.63 Mg ha -1 ). In the homegarden agroforestry practice, having encompassed different types of plants, t...
Regional Review Workshop on Completed Research Activities
The study was conducted in Gutogida, Diga and Sibu sire districts of East Wollega, Bakotibe and I... more The study was conducted in Gutogida, Diga and Sibu sire districts of East Wollega, Bakotibe and Ilu galan of West Shaw zones and in Bako agricultural research center with the objectives to assess constraints associated with hormonal assisting artificial insemination and to evaluate the response of Horro (Bosindicus) cows after estrous synchronization. In this study, structured questioner was used and a total of 210 respondents (180 small holder dairy farmers, 10 animal health workers, 10 animal production professionals and 10 AI technicians were interviewed. Retrospective data from specified districts were also included to identify constraints associated with hormonal assisting artificial insemination in the study areas. The study indicated that most of the respondents (93.33%) were took training on the issue of mass estrous synchronization, AI services before the commencement of the program. However, most of the respondents (57.78%) had moderate knowledge on heat detection and only few (27.22%) of them can keep the record of their synchronized cows/heifers. The main restraints for the low success rate of on farm hormone assisted artificial insemination (estrus synchronization)were identified as failure of conception (42.22%), using of poor management of cows/heifers (15%), difficulty in heat detection by the farmers (13.89%), skill gap and unavailability of artificial insemination technicians (AITs)(12.78%) and poor hormonal responses (11.11%). Therefore, to enhance the genetic potential of low dairy cows through cross breeding scheme, revising of the existing hormone assisted estrus synchronization, artificial insemination delivery system, improving the ability of farmers and experts on the handling and management of dairy cows/heifers should be due in place. Moreover, awareness creation should be done to change the attitude of farmers on hormone assisted estrus synchronization.
American Journal of Agriculture and Forestry, 2021
Prior integration of any tree/shrub species in a given land use system there is always the need o... more Prior integration of any tree/shrub species in a given land use system there is always the need of undertaking a field trials for the adaptability and growth performance evaluation for particular environment. Study was designed and conducted to evaluate the adaptability potential and growth performance of six nitrogen fixing tree/shrub species in Dello-menna district of Bale zone, southeast Ethiopia. The considered species in the study are Cajanus cajan, Flemingya macrophylla, Gliricidia sepium, Sesbania sesban, Calliandra calothyrsus and Leucaena leucocephela. Seedlings were produced in a nursery site and transplanted to the experimental site. The experiment was laid out in RCBD design with three replications, and the management practices employed uniformly for each species throughout the stud period. In the study the necessary growth performance data parameters; plant height, root collar diameter and survival rate were measured and recorded. Thereafter, the data was analyzed by Ge...
Plant Species Diversity for Climate Change Adaptation and Mitigation
Climate is one of the most important factors that influence and determine the behavior, abundance... more Climate is one of the most important factors that influence and determine the behavior, abundance and distribution of species, as well as having a strong influence on the ecology of habitats and ecosystems structure. Changes in the behavior, abundance and distribution of species are linked to climate. Diversity and plant species are highly interlinked and the relationship between biodiversity and climate change should be explored from several perspectives. This variety provides the building blocks to adapt to changing environmental conditions which are caused due to climate change. Conserved habitats can remove carbon dioxide from the atmosphere, thus helping to address climate change by storing carbon in the plant biomass. Climate is one of the major limiting factors which determine the survival and growth of plants. The conservation and restoration of biodiversity and ecosystem services can play a key role in helping societies to adapt to climate change. Biodiversity is affected b...
Geology, Ecology, and Landscapes
The physical and chemical properties of soil are strongly influenced by type of land use system i... more The physical and chemical properties of soil are strongly influenced by type of land use system implemented. Eucalyptus is a group of tree species, which is native to Australia but widely grown throughout the world. In Ethiopia also due to its fast-growing nature of eucalyptus combined with its extensively recognized socioeconomic benefits, this introduced species has been widely planted. Even if the economic contributions there are a lot of controversies are raised from different parts of the world. Therefore, this study is planned to evaluate the effects of Eucalyptus species plantations and crop land on selected soil properties around Bale. In the case ,moisture content, except for Goro district, for the other districts (Agarfa, Dello Menna, Goba, Robe) the amount of moisture content is higher in the soil under Eucalyptus plantation land uses than crop land. When we see the overall mean wise comparison of the whole land uses, as the depth increases the overall mean potential of soil chemical properties in PH, OC%, OM%, and available P decreases. But in the case of EC as the depth increases the concentration slightly increases. When we see the general overview of the land uses, no significant differences were observed between Eucalyptus plantation land uses and crop land use. Even in most of the parameter especially in soil organic carbon and soil organic matter the highest value were recorded in Eucalyptus plantation land uses than crop land use. This is due to the recycling of nutrient through decomposition of different tree parts. In terms of crop land due to cereal crop intensive agricultural system, most the soil nutrient is depleted. Therefore, this finding concluding that eucalyptus could positively impact soil physical and chemical properties through decayed litter than intensively cultivated crop land.
International Journal of Environment
Soil organic carbon is the carbon associated with soil organic matter that is made up of decompos... more Soil organic carbon is the carbon associated with soil organic matter that is made up of decomposed plant and animal materials. This study was conducted in Dallo Mena district to estimate the amount of soil carbon stock stored in shade grown coffee (SC) and homegarden agroforestry practices (HG), and adjacent natural forest (NF) and annual crop field (CF) and to show the potential of agroforestry practices in soil organic carbon storage capacity. The study site was selected based on spatial analogue approach.
Natural Resources, 2016
Sustainable farming practice that utilizes and conserves biodiversity, reducing negative impacts ... more Sustainable farming practice that utilizes and conserves biodiversity, reducing negative impacts of agriculture on biodiversity and provides wood and energy to local community is a good solution to reduce deforestation and forest degradation. This study was carried out in Dallo Mena district of Bale zone to identify woody species diversity in homegarden agroforestry practices, shade grown coffee agroforestry practices and adjacent natural forest, and to show how land use and management practice determine the plant species diversity. The study site was selected based on spatial analogue approach. In each land use, a plots of 10 m × 10 m size was drown by using systematic sampling method following the transect line. A total of 36 sample plots were sampled along the transect line laid down inside each land uses. In each plot, woody species were counted and the diameter and height of trees and shrubs were measured. Based on this inventory a total of 39 woody plant species which are about 23, 10, 15 woody plant species were recorded from natural forest, shade grown coffee agroforestry and homegarden agroforestry practices respectively. These species were classified belonging to 24 families. The Shannon Wiener diversity index used to estimate species diversity ranged from 0.14 to 2.54 with a mean of 1.47. Also 21% woody species similarities were observed between those three land uses. The result shows that both agroforestry practices (shade grown coffee and home garden agroforestry practices) and adjacent natural forests are conserving several woody species diversity in its system.
International Journal of Agricultural Research, Innovation and Technology, Aug 21, 2023
Moringa is a tree with medicinal, nutritional, industrial, and socio-economic values. Moringa lea... more Moringa is a tree with medicinal, nutritional, industrial, and socio-economic values. Moringa leaf extracts have potential antihypertensive, antispasmodic, antiulcer, diuretic, hepato-protective and cholesterol-lowering activities. The study was conducted to analyze the nutritional quality of different moringa provenances and to promote the best provenances for the end users. Field experiments were conducted in Goro and Dallo Mena districts of Bale located in Oromia regional state of Ethiopia. Collected samples were airdried at room temperature and milled for laboratory analysis. According to this study growing environment did not bring significant variation (P>0.05) in average mineral contents like Mg, Zn, P and CP content of the provenances. But significantly higher (P<0.05) Na, K, and Ca were recorded for the samples collected from Dallo Mena district, whereas higher Ash and Fe content was recorded in Goro district. On the other hand, provenance from Dallo Mena and Bako is superior to most of the quality characters analyzed. However, the one from Arbaminch is higher in Na and Zn contents. Provenance from Abay Filiklik is higher in Ash, K and P content. Moringa leaf is rich in Ash, Zn, Cp, and Mg to the sufficient level, while Fe, Ca and P are to the level of high or double to triple to the optimum level when compared to the optimum nutrient content of plant material. Generally, higher mean and individual chemical quality values were recorded from provenances grown in Dallo Mena district except for K, Fe, Zn, and CP, which are higher in Goro.
World Journal of Agricultural Science and Technology, Apr 17, 2024
Agroforestry parklands are playing an important role, through trees and shrubs providing multiple... more Agroforestry parklands are playing an important role, through trees and shrubs providing multiple products and important long-term ecological benefits. Purposive sampling methods were applied to select districts, PAs and farmers which mostly used parkland agroforestry practices. Based on information delivered from informal assessment result, formal survey was done with selected 84 HHHs (sample size) for the study purposes. Based on the existences of long lived parkland agroforestry practice and associated challenges four PAs from Ginir and Goro districts of Bale Zones were selected purposively with assistance of district agriculture office expertise and DAs. Survey results showed the presence of 17 woody species of trees and shrubs representing eleven (11) families at the study areas. Of seventeen (17) woody plant species retained/planted and managed on parklands, 82.4% were native. Fabaceae was the most dominant woody species family which accounted about 41.2% of the total number of species recorded. The Croton macrostachyus Hochst., Faidherbia albida, Cordia africana Lam., Acacia abyssinica Hochst., Junperus procera Hochst and Acacia species were the most frequently observed multipurpose woody species in the study area. Almost all of the respondents did practise different types of management activities or practices for the woody species they owned in parkland of the study areas. This finding revealed that pollarding (33.45%), coppicing (21.08%), branch pruning (35.56) and the rest thinning and protection woody species management practices were applied to the scattered trees on croplands of the study areas. On other side, respondents stated that the major challenges for the improvement of parkland agroforestry practices in the study area were instability of rain fail or drought (34.52%) and shortage of farmlands (21.43%). The finding of this study showed that agricultural landscapes (Parkland agroforestery practices) were the home/host of reasonable number of native woody species flora conservation or it's almost the remnants of the natural vegetation. Therefore, further need for more comprehensive analysis of the multiple benefits and services provided by parkland trees located on farmlands or the interaction effects of the agroforestery components on soil fertility improvement, crop yields and quality in the future.
American Journal of Agriculture and Forestry, 2021
Prior integration of any tree/shrub species in a given land use system there is always the need o... more Prior integration of any tree/shrub species in a given land use system there is always the need of undertaking a field trials for the adaptability and growth performance evaluation for particular environment. Study was designed and conducted to evaluate the adaptability potential and growth performance of six nitrogen fixing tree/shrub species in Dello-menna district of Bale zone, southeast Ethiopia. The considered species in the study are Cajanus cajan, Flemingya macrophylla, Gliricidia sepium, Sesbania sesban, Calliandra calothyrsus and Leucaena leucocephela. Seedlings were produced in a nursery site and transplanted to the experimental site. The experiment was laid out in RCBD design with three replications, and the management practices employed uniformly for each species throughout the stud period. In the study the necessary growth performance data parameters; plant height, root collar diameter and survival rate were measured and recorded. Thereafter, the data was analyzed by Ge...
Carbon sequestration is the process through which carbon dioxide is absorbed by plants and stored... more Carbon sequestration is the process through which carbon dioxide is absorbed by plants and stored as carbon in biomass and soil. Agroforestry systems have larger chances to sequester Carbon in the long-term, adding aboveground carbon storage capacity through a broader diversity of living forms, including trees and crops (Murthy et al., 2013). The study was conducted in Dallo Mena districts of Bale located in Oromia regional state of Ethiopia. Therefore, this study aims to estimate the amount of carbon stored in agroforestry, and to compare the potential of agroforestry practices with the other common land uses. Based on this study there is significant difference in mean total carbon stock in the three pools among land uses. From all systems the highest total carbon stock were recorded in Natural forest (426.54±95.51 Mg ha -1 ) followed by shade grown coffee agroforestry (266.61±56.63 Mg ha -1 ). In the homegarden agroforestry practice, having encompassed different types of plants, t...
Regional Review Workshop on Completed Research Activities
The study was conducted in Gutogida, Diga and Sibu sire districts of East Wollega, Bakotibe and I... more The study was conducted in Gutogida, Diga and Sibu sire districts of East Wollega, Bakotibe and Ilu galan of West Shaw zones and in Bako agricultural research center with the objectives to assess constraints associated with hormonal assisting artificial insemination and to evaluate the response of Horro (Bosindicus) cows after estrous synchronization. In this study, structured questioner was used and a total of 210 respondents (180 small holder dairy farmers, 10 animal health workers, 10 animal production professionals and 10 AI technicians were interviewed. Retrospective data from specified districts were also included to identify constraints associated with hormonal assisting artificial insemination in the study areas. The study indicated that most of the respondents (93.33%) were took training on the issue of mass estrous synchronization, AI services before the commencement of the program. However, most of the respondents (57.78%) had moderate knowledge on heat detection and only few (27.22%) of them can keep the record of their synchronized cows/heifers. The main restraints for the low success rate of on farm hormone assisted artificial insemination (estrus synchronization)were identified as failure of conception (42.22%), using of poor management of cows/heifers (15%), difficulty in heat detection by the farmers (13.89%), skill gap and unavailability of artificial insemination technicians (AITs)(12.78%) and poor hormonal responses (11.11%). Therefore, to enhance the genetic potential of low dairy cows through cross breeding scheme, revising of the existing hormone assisted estrus synchronization, artificial insemination delivery system, improving the ability of farmers and experts on the handling and management of dairy cows/heifers should be due in place. Moreover, awareness creation should be done to change the attitude of farmers on hormone assisted estrus synchronization.
American Journal of Agriculture and Forestry, 2021
Prior integration of any tree/shrub species in a given land use system there is always the need o... more Prior integration of any tree/shrub species in a given land use system there is always the need of undertaking a field trials for the adaptability and growth performance evaluation for particular environment. Study was designed and conducted to evaluate the adaptability potential and growth performance of six nitrogen fixing tree/shrub species in Dello-menna district of Bale zone, southeast Ethiopia. The considered species in the study are Cajanus cajan, Flemingya macrophylla, Gliricidia sepium, Sesbania sesban, Calliandra calothyrsus and Leucaena leucocephela. Seedlings were produced in a nursery site and transplanted to the experimental site. The experiment was laid out in RCBD design with three replications, and the management practices employed uniformly for each species throughout the stud period. In the study the necessary growth performance data parameters; plant height, root collar diameter and survival rate were measured and recorded. Thereafter, the data was analyzed by Ge...
Plant Species Diversity for Climate Change Adaptation and Mitigation
Climate is one of the most important factors that influence and determine the behavior, abundance... more Climate is one of the most important factors that influence and determine the behavior, abundance and distribution of species, as well as having a strong influence on the ecology of habitats and ecosystems structure. Changes in the behavior, abundance and distribution of species are linked to climate. Diversity and plant species are highly interlinked and the relationship between biodiversity and climate change should be explored from several perspectives. This variety provides the building blocks to adapt to changing environmental conditions which are caused due to climate change. Conserved habitats can remove carbon dioxide from the atmosphere, thus helping to address climate change by storing carbon in the plant biomass. Climate is one of the major limiting factors which determine the survival and growth of plants. The conservation and restoration of biodiversity and ecosystem services can play a key role in helping societies to adapt to climate change. Biodiversity is affected b...
Geology, Ecology, and Landscapes
The physical and chemical properties of soil are strongly influenced by type of land use system i... more The physical and chemical properties of soil are strongly influenced by type of land use system implemented. Eucalyptus is a group of tree species, which is native to Australia but widely grown throughout the world. In Ethiopia also due to its fast-growing nature of eucalyptus combined with its extensively recognized socioeconomic benefits, this introduced species has been widely planted. Even if the economic contributions there are a lot of controversies are raised from different parts of the world. Therefore, this study is planned to evaluate the effects of Eucalyptus species plantations and crop land on selected soil properties around Bale. In the case ,moisture content, except for Goro district, for the other districts (Agarfa, Dello Menna, Goba, Robe) the amount of moisture content is higher in the soil under Eucalyptus plantation land uses than crop land. When we see the overall mean wise comparison of the whole land uses, as the depth increases the overall mean potential of soil chemical properties in PH, OC%, OM%, and available P decreases. But in the case of EC as the depth increases the concentration slightly increases. When we see the general overview of the land uses, no significant differences were observed between Eucalyptus plantation land uses and crop land use. Even in most of the parameter especially in soil organic carbon and soil organic matter the highest value were recorded in Eucalyptus plantation land uses than crop land use. This is due to the recycling of nutrient through decomposition of different tree parts. In terms of crop land due to cereal crop intensive agricultural system, most the soil nutrient is depleted. Therefore, this finding concluding that eucalyptus could positively impact soil physical and chemical properties through decayed litter than intensively cultivated crop land.
International Journal of Environment
Soil organic carbon is the carbon associated with soil organic matter that is made up of decompos... more Soil organic carbon is the carbon associated with soil organic matter that is made up of decomposed plant and animal materials. This study was conducted in Dallo Mena district to estimate the amount of soil carbon stock stored in shade grown coffee (SC) and homegarden agroforestry practices (HG), and adjacent natural forest (NF) and annual crop field (CF) and to show the potential of agroforestry practices in soil organic carbon storage capacity. The study site was selected based on spatial analogue approach.
Natural Resources, 2016
Sustainable farming practice that utilizes and conserves biodiversity, reducing negative impacts ... more Sustainable farming practice that utilizes and conserves biodiversity, reducing negative impacts of agriculture on biodiversity and provides wood and energy to local community is a good solution to reduce deforestation and forest degradation. This study was carried out in Dallo Mena district of Bale zone to identify woody species diversity in homegarden agroforestry practices, shade grown coffee agroforestry practices and adjacent natural forest, and to show how land use and management practice determine the plant species diversity. The study site was selected based on spatial analogue approach. In each land use, a plots of 10 m × 10 m size was drown by using systematic sampling method following the transect line. A total of 36 sample plots were sampled along the transect line laid down inside each land uses. In each plot, woody species were counted and the diameter and height of trees and shrubs were measured. Based on this inventory a total of 39 woody plant species which are about 23, 10, 15 woody plant species were recorded from natural forest, shade grown coffee agroforestry and homegarden agroforestry practices respectively. These species were classified belonging to 24 families. The Shannon Wiener diversity index used to estimate species diversity ranged from 0.14 to 2.54 with a mean of 1.47. Also 21% woody species similarities were observed between those three land uses. The result shows that both agroforestry practices (shade grown coffee and home garden agroforestry practices) and adjacent natural forests are conserving several woody species diversity in its system.