Effect of plant spacing and harvesting age on morphological characteristics and yield of Desho grass ( Pennisetum glaucifolium L.) at Adola sub-site of Bore Agricultural Research Center, Oromia Region, Ethiopia.

Abstract

This study was carried out in the Adola sub-site of the Bore Agricultural Research Centre in order to assess the effects of suitable harvesting age and plant spacing on the morphological traits and yield of Desho grass. Randomized complete block design (RCBD) with 3*3 factorial configurations in three replications was used to set up the experiment. The experiment makes use of three plant spacing (10, 30 and 50 cm) and three harvesting stages (75, 105, and 135 days). Prior to planting 100 kg/ha -1 combinations of Nitrogen, phosphate and sulfur (NPS) fertilizer were applied to all plots. The data collected from the study includes morphological characteristics such as; plant height (PH), leaf length per plant (LLPP), number of leaves per plant (NLPP), number of tillers per plant (NTPP), Leaf to steam ratio (LSR), dry matter yield (DMY), survival rate (SR), Plot cover (PC), and vigorousity. All data were subjected to GLM ANOVA procedures of SAS, 2002 version 9.0. The results revealed that all morphological characteristics were significantly (p < 0.01) affected by the treatments except leaf to steam ratio and plot cover The minimum mean number of tiller per plant (NTPP) of 21.53 was obtained from 10*75 treatments while the maximum number of tiller per plant (NTPP) of 59.3 was recorded from 50*135 treatments. The highest plant height (100.43 cm) was recorded from 30*105 treatments, while the lowest plant height was obtained from 30*75 treatments. The highest (31.87) dry matter yield tone per hectare was recorded from 30*105 while the lowest (4.4) were obtained from 50*75 treatments. It is possible to draw the conclusion that, in the current experiment near Adola, the treatment combination of 30 cm*105 days has produced the best production and nutritional values of Desho grass. To reach trustworthy results, more research on various combinations of harvesting stage and plant spacing across years and regions is necessary.