Ethiopia Tree Seeds and Seedlings

8/9/2019 Ethiopia Tree Seeds and Seedlings

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ACIAR TREES FOR FOOD SECURITY PROJECT

SUMMARY REPORT ON KEY INFORMANT SURVEY ON SEEDS AND SEEDLINGS

SYSTEMS IN ETHIOPIA

Ruth Kinuthia, Jonathan Muriui, E!"r#$n %in$an$a, E!"#$n Ki&tot, Cath"rin" Muthuri, Kiro'

Ha()u an( A*a$n"h D"r"ro

INTRODUCTION

The Key informant survey on seeds and seedlings systems in Ethiopia was conducted in the two project

sites namely: East Shewa and East Wollega/ West Shewa area. The two sites are mandate areas for

Melassa and !ao "griculture #esearch $entres. They are also the implementing sites for the "$%"#

funded project aimed at improving Sustaina&le 'roductivity in (arming Systems and Enhanced

)ivelihoods through "doption of Evergreen "griculture in Eastern "frica. The o&jectives of the survey

were: i* to map out the tree seeds and seedlings supply system in the country in order to esta&lish the role

of the government and +,-s in the systems ii* to assess the uality of the germplasm as mapped out in

the seed sourcing0 collection/ procurement and distri&ution and ultimately seedling production and iii* to

identify the organi1ations and individuals dealing with tree seeds and seedlings0 their roles0 supply

channels0 the support given to tree seed dealers and nursery operators availa&le and challenges

encountered in the system.

Key informants interviewed include woreda +atural #esource Management e2perts in five woredas in

East Shewa 34ugda0 "dami Tulu 5ido Kom&olcha0 !ora0 )ume and Wolenchiti* four woredas in East

Wollega/ West Shewa where&y ,uto ,ida0 5ima "rjo and ,o&u sayo are in East Wollega and !ao Ti&e

in West Shewa. #epresentatives of three +on6governmental organi1ations were also interviewed. These

include: Sustaina&le Environment 4evelopment "ssociation 3SE4"*0 #ift 7alley Women and $hildren

4evelopment -rgani1ation and %nternational 4evelopment Enterprise 3%4E*. The two religious

organi1ations interviewed were Mei $atholic church which has a component in agriculture and natural

resource management and Meaneyesus $hurch woring in Mei and +eemte. %n Mei Meaneyesus

$hurch0 the natural resource component leader in Water Supply and Sanitation project 3W"S8'"* was

interviewed. "lso interviewed were research officers at Melassa #esearch $entre and (orest #esearch

$enter 3(#$* as well as one private seed dealer in "ddis "&a&a.

THE CONTE+T OF AGROFORESTRY IN ETHIOPIA


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%n &oth sites agro pastoralism is dominant farmers cultivate various crops and eep livestoc. Major

crops grown include teff0 mai1e and &eans. 7egeta&les are also common especially in areas under

irrigation. -ther crops include potatoes and wheat.

4ifferent tree species planted for various uses were noted. The trees include: fodder trees which are also

widely planted for soil conservation especially in East Shewa. Trees are also planted for fencing0 shade0

tree products such as wood and tim&er and for construction purposes. (ruit trees have also &een

esta&lished in &oth sites. 4erero 39;9*0 in agreement with these findings0 reported that tree planting in

Ethiopia is carried out in many ways and for various purposes. 'lanting niches include esta&lishment of

woodlots0 homestead and &oundary plantings0 plantings on soil conservation structures and in degraded

areas for reha&ilitation. -thers include peri6ur&an fuel wood plantations0 &uffer 1one and tim&er

plantations in state forests0 enrichment plantings in degraded natural stands0 esta&lishment of seed stands

and plantings in church compounds and ur&an areas.

TREE SPECIES RAISED IN THE NURSERIES

7arious tree species are raised in the government and +,- nurseries &ased on community needs. The

government initiative of closing up degraded areas for reha&ilitation has also led to esta&lishment of more

species for this purpose.

Trees species raised in the nurseries consisted of fodder species such as Leucaena leucocephala and

Sesbania sesban.Dovyalis abyssinica, Delonix regia, Jacaranda mimosifolia and Schinus molle were

esta&lished for fencing purposes. Species esta&lished for shade wereJacaranda mimosifolia andDelonix

regia and those for tree products such as wood and tim&er for construction included Grevillea robusta and

Eucalyptus spp. (ruit trees esta&lished in &oth sites were mainlyPersea americana0Mangifera indica and

arica papaya. "nother study conducted &y )emenih and !ongers0 39;;* showed that forest plantations

in Ethiopia are mainly composed ofEucalyptus species 3? of industrially planted area* and

upressus lusitanica 39.@?*0 followed &y the indigenousJuniperus procera 3


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conditions. -ther species in high demand include Ses&ania0 )eucaena and fodder grasses for provision of

fodder and at the same time for soil conservation purposes.

Moringa Stenopetala is &eing promoted as a new species for on6farm planting. The species is indigenous

&ut has not &een widely used due to lac of awareness of its multiple uses among communities.Leucaena

trichandra and )ephrosia spp for fodder provision have &een introduced recently in East Shewa &y

Melassa #esearch $entre.

SOURCE, COLLECTION AND DISTRI%UTION OF SEEDS AND SEEDLINGS

The (orestry #esearch $enter 3(#$* of the Ethiopian %nstitute of "gricultural #esearch 3E%"#* has &een

the sole supplier of tested tree seeds in Ethiopia since its esta&lishment in ;=A


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tree seed and seedling system include %4E and Meaneyesus in +eemte. %4E supports government

nurseries &y purchasing tree seeds from seed dealers and giving them to the woredas to raise seedlings

which are then distri&uted to the communities. Seedlings are transported to the farmers in the various

e&eles freely 3although a small fee is charged to the ur&an dwellers in 4ugda woreda* &oth &y the

government and +,-s. Meaneyesus in +eemte supports individual nurseries with technical advice on

all aspects of nursery management and provides the nursery owners with nursery euipment such as water

cans0 hoes0 spades and raes. The organi1ation used to run project nurseries for training and

demonstration from 9D6 9; &ut after that0 they started focusing on private nurseries. This was after the

community mem&ers demonstrated nowledge and understanding on nursery management techniues.

They have more than @ &eneficiaries with nurseries in the project sites that they are currently woring

with. Some of these are individual owners especially the model farmers others operate the nurseries as a

group.

4istri&ution of tree seeds to individual nursery operators &y the woreda government is not common in

&oth sites. Cowever0 4ugda0 "lem Tena0 Wolenchiti and !ao indicated that they distri&ute tree seeds to

individuals and groups. Most of the seeds are mainly given to the government nurseries0 schools0 and

farmers or groups with the capacity to raise them in the nurseries. +,-s prefer to distri&ute seedlings as

opposed to seeds. Meaneyesus distri&utes seeds only. %4E distri&utes only seeds for fodder grasses to

individuals. Seed distri&ution is done through 4"s in most cases0 sometimes farmers tae them from the

woreda offices. %4E and Meaneyesus tae the seeds to the &eneficiaries. %n !ao Ti&e0 seedlings are sold

to farmers who have to transport them from the woreda nursery.

GENETIC, PHYSIOLOGICAL AND PHYSICAL -UALITY OF THE SEEDS

!oth woredas and +,-s purchase the seeds from licensed dealers in Southern region and "ddis "&a&a.

These seeds are trusted to &e of high uality hence most woredas do not carry out any uality tests for

them. To ensure genetic uality for locally collected seeds0 seed collectors are trained in advance &y the

woreda forestry/ natural resource management officers and 4evelopment "gents 34"s* on the factors to

consider in determining the mother trees such as age0 health0 num&er of the trees and physical ualities

depending on the purpose of the trees.

"fter collection0 tests are done to determine the germination rates and0 in some woredas0 collectors are

only paid after determining the germination rates. 'hysical uality is ascertained through o&servation of

the seed colour0 insect attac or &roen/damaged seeds. (#$ pointed out that they conduct purity test0

germination test0 test storage &ehavior and pre sowing treatment for the seeds.


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4erero 39;9*0 focusing his study on Wolaita and "rsi in Ethiopia0 found out that (#$ generally collects

seeds from accepta&le num&er of mother trees 3at least 9 trees* &ut occasionally from smaller num&er of

trees which could compromise the genetic uality of the collected seeds. Ce therefore noted the

importance of a careful selection of mother trees and species &ased collection guidelines which are still

lacing in Ethiopia0 to guarantee the genetic uality in the collections.

FARMER SEED COLLECTION AND SEEDLING PRODUCTION

%ndividual seed collection was not commonly reported in &oth sites. Cowever it was evident that &oth the

government institutions and +,-s are encouraging it. $ommunities are encouraged to collect seeds and

esta&lish them in their individual nurseries or sell to other farmers/groups that operate nurseries. The

government in most cases however does not purchase seeds from them since they are not licensed &ut it

accords support such as trainings0 provision of seedling containers and nursery materials. Some +,-s

such as SE4" engage some collectors permanently.

$hallenges encountered during seeds and seedlings distri&ution &y the government and +,-s necessitate

esta&lishment of more individual/group nurseries to meet community needs. This is &ased on the premise

that the evolution of a networ of small6scale tree nurseries in rural areas could facilitate access of

resource6poor farmers to improved tree planting material 34egrande et al. 9;9*. (armers join nursery

groups to learn tree propagation techniues and to &enefit from plants produced in the group nursery.

"lternatively0 they might prefer to purchase improved planting material of their choice in small6scale

nurseries that are not too far from their homes.

Transport pro&lem is also a major challenge to meeting seedling demand &y smallholder farmers roads

are poor and some e&eles are inaccessi&le during rainy seasons. Many seedlings are damaged during

transportation and sometimes vehicles to transport the seedlings are unavaila&le.

SUPPORT TO SEED COLECTORS AND NURSERY OPERATORS

-ne of the most important activities that support seed and seedling systems is technical sill development

3Carrison et al. 9B*. Trainings on seed collection and nursery management are conducted for nursery

worers in &oth government and +,- nurseries. The trainings are done to casual worers 3who are

mainly engaged in seed collection* and individual nursery operators. The trainings are conducted &y

woreda officers0 4"s0 +,-s and e2perts from other institutions such as research centres. The wider

community 3including other farmers in the e&eles not necessarily engaged directly in seed collection

and nursery operations* is also trained mainly &y the 4"s on seed collection0 nursery sites selection0

nursery


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esta&lishment and management of trees on farm. Some (T$s have nursery sites where demonstration

taes place.

,overnment nurseries are supported &y the government and +,-s. These include the central nurseries

located at the woreda centres and other nurseries in the e&eles0 most of which are temporary nurseries.

+,-s support their own nurseries too. %ndividual nurseries are for commercial purposes and these are

managed &y the individuals. Some group nurseries are for commercial purposes as is the case in )ume

woreda. ,roup nurseries esta&lished &y +,-s are aimed at providing seedlings to the group/community

mem&ers and also for training and demonstration purposes.

SEED SUFFICIENCY TO THE COMMUNITY NEEDS

Seeds and seedlings distri&uted &y the government are not sufficient to meet community needs. The

uantity of seeds purchased &y the government is limited due to the &udget allocation. +,-s help in

supply of more seedlings &ut still the demand is not fully met. 4ue to this0 farmers are encouraged to

collect seeds &y themselves and esta&lish their own nurseries. %f well supported0 seed collection &y

farmers could surpass what the government and +,-s are a&le to supply.

Elsewhere in Malawi0 more than = ? of the documented agroforestry tree seed distri&uted to farmers in

Malawi was produced &y smallholder farmers and collected mainly from scattered farmland trees 3+yoa

et al. 9;;*. These authors concluded that the procurement and distri&ution of germplasm to farmers was

in general effective0 &ut that sustaina&ility could &e enhanced &y strengthening grassroots organi1ations

involved in tree seed and seedling production to institutionali1e the distri&ution through farmerFfarmer

e2change.

VEGETATIVELY PRODUCED SPECIES AND SCIONS.CUTTINGS SOURCE

7egetative propagation techniues can result in accelerated fruit production compared to tree

esta&lishment from seed 35amnadass et al' 9;;*0 among other merits in uality tree germplasm

production. The level of acceleration in fruiting of vegetative propagules depends on the level of

ontogenetic maturity of the material &eing propagated. This is determined &y the origin of the scion or

cutting from within the tree/stoc plant. Moreover0 vegetative as opposed to seed collection has &een

applied when significant genetic gain through Gtrue6to6type cloning is anticipated. Cowever0 vegetative

sampling and su&seuent multiplication reuire more resources such as nursery propagators when

compared to seed collection 34awson et al.0 9;9*.


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The seed collectors have to travel to far places to search for them0 a process which is e2pensive. )ac of

sufficient seed collection euipment also maes the whole seed acuisition process difficult.

CHALLENGES FACING FARMER SEED DEALERS AND NURSERY OPERATORS

Seed dealers incur high transport costs in travelling since some mother trees are very far. %llegal seed

dealers sell the seeds at lower prices maing it difficult for the private dealers to maret their seeds at

favoura&le prices. Cigh cost of collection results to increased seed prices which discourages &uyers and

maes the collectors compromise on uality. Most private/individual seed dealers are not concerned a&out

uality hence may end up collecting seeds of poor uality. %nadeuate/unavaila&ility of adeuate seeds is

another challenge that was noted. Seed storage is also a pro&lem due to unavaila&ility of cold room

facilities therefore seeds cannot &e stored for a long time especially in cases where &uyers are not readily

availa&le.

)arge scale nursery operators face la&our challenge. They also lac enough inputs such as seeds

polythene tu&es0 watering cans and pumps0 nursery tools and euipment for seed collection e.g. ladders

and hoos. . Sometimes nursery operators raise seedlings without fully assessing demand leading to poor

sales hence incurring losses. Shortage of water for the nurseries and destruction &y termites was reported.

4ue to financial challenges nursery operators are una&le to afford seed pots and high uality seeds of

species such as Eucalyptus and ,revillea and most of the seedlings are raised without pots. ,enerally

nursery operators lac nowledge/sills in collection of uality seeds and nursery management.

Oth"r Cha##"n)"'

(ree gra1ing culture leads to destruction of the planted tree seedlings resulting in low tree survival rate.

4estruction of planted trees &y cattle0 camels0 wild animals such as moneys 3especially on Moringa spp(

was reported' )ac of awareness on the importance of trees on farmlands &y farmers leads to low

commitment to tree planting and management. Sometimes farmers may not &e willing to plant trees on

farmland at all. Some farmers e2tend settlement and farmlands to the communal lands closed for

reha&ilitation which e2acer&ates seedling esta&lishment difficulties. 8nfavoura&le weather conditions

affects growth and survival of the trees planted. (or e2ample there had &een very heavy rainfall in West

Shewa0 the year &efore this interview that destroyed seedlings. Tree species lie ordia africana dry

easily%cacia saligna species have a short life span and farmers tend to resist these trees.

Knowledge gaps e2ist at the grass root level on what type of trees to plant and their management options.

+,-s lac of e2perts speciali1ed in tree seeds lead to purchase of seeds that do not meet farmers needs

or are of poor uality. This was e2emplified &y World 7ision who in the previous year had &ought


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mangoes that were of poor uality in Wolenchiti and incurred great losses after they failed to germinate.

The short project duration for the +,-s &efore they complete all their activities maes it difficult to

follow up on the planted trees.

GOVERNMENT AND NGO' IN ADDRESSING TREE GERMPLASM SUPPLY CHALLENGES

Engagement of government agencies and +,-s in improving tree seed systems endeavor is important. "

new ministry of Environment and (orestry was created in 5une 9;> and is e2pected to focus more on

seeds supply. Some government interventions indicated include certification of seed dealers to ensure

uality and e2amination of seed dealers at least twice a year. Seeds are also tested in research centers to

ensure uality. $entral nurseries are esta&lished at woredas for seedlings distri&ution to the communities.

Woredas purchase seeds only from licensed dealers.

Training and capacity &uilding of the government e2perts in agronomy and natural resource management

is done at &oth woreda and e&ele level. Training and participatory nursery development are proven

methods of &uilding farmers awareness0 leadership and technical sills and independence regarding

germplasm uality0 production and management capacity 3$arandang et al 9@*. To achieve all these

farmers also need to &e trained. The government supports woreda nurseries with financial resources

3sometimes inadeuate* and materials such as seeds0 raes0 hoes0 water cans and facilitation of daily

worers. +,-s provide vehicles to the woredas to assist in transportation of the seedlings.

Efforts &y the government to reha&ilitate area closures due to deforestation0 erosion and farm land

e2pansion are also done promotion of agroforestry techniues &y the government and +,-s encourages

many tree and crop species on the same land0 in this way different tree seeds can &e o&tained easily

regional states e.g. the Southern nation are esta&lishing more seed centers 3similar to (#$*.

PRELIMINARY RECOMMENDATIONS

(rom the findings a&ove0 a num&er of recommendations can &e made. These include &uilding the

technical capacity of seed dealers and nursery operators in the study sites and devising mechanisms for

ensuring fair trade0 and evaluation of changes. More training should focus on uality seed collection and

nursery esta&lishment &y individual farmers especially in e&eles located far from the woreda nursery

which currently face transport pro&lems. Moreover0 on enhancing high uality seeds and seedlings0 a fair

and transparent &idding system should &e focused on so that there is a supply of highly pure seeds with

high germination rates. 4ecentrali1ation of seed supply through esta&lishment of more seed centers closer

to the communities or supporting communities to esta&lish genetically diverse seed sources is necessary

since seeds are currently o&tained from as far as Southern nation and "ddis "&a&a.


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The "groforestry e2tension system should &e strengthened and technical manuals for seed collection and

handling and seedling production produced. "wareness creation on importance of planting trees to the

wider community should &e enhanced. )ocal institutional mechanisms should &e involved in tree

planting to emphasi1e tree tenure0 proper planting methods0 protection and management approaches that

guarantee high seedling survival rates. $ommunities should &e encouraged to engage more in local seed

collection for species easily accessi&le and adapted to the area with seed pooling to enhance genetic

diversity of the collected lots.

The current focus on some0 mainly e2otic0 tree species is undermining the farm tree diversity hence

collection of tree seeds &y the pu&lic sector should &e more diverse. Enhanced promotion of indigenous

tree species which can easily regenerate naturally such as acacia species is necessary. There is need for

&etter community mo&ili1ation to inform farmers on &enefits of such species especially in climate change

adaptation and natural resources management. More research should also focus on methods of

propagation of certain species to this effect. This can also &e supported &y creating a good synergy

among staeholders during nursery esta&lishment and tree planting and follow6up with farmers after

planting.

The woreda offices of "griculture are currently e2cellent in seed distri&ution &ut wea in follow6up.

$reation of a stronger linage &etween +,-s0 ,overnment and individual farmers to wor together in

nursery trainings0 esta&lishment and management is necessary as well.

,overnment support for individual/group nurseries through provision of seeds0 polythene tu&es and tools

such as shovels0 hoes0 raes is no&le. Cowever0 in as much as seeds and other materials are made availa&le

to nurseries and farmers during various projects0 efforts should &e made to ensure the security or self6

reliance of the farmers to sustain the seed access &eyond a projects life span. )ining nurseries and seed

dealers to marets and input supply chains with credit facilities need to &e tested. %ncreased &udget

allocation to the woreda nurseries to ena&le them purchase seeds of good uality for different species

3especially fruit species* is necessary. This can help them raise more seedlings for distri&ution0 o&tain

modern nursery euipment and to hire people to guard the nurseries in the short term. Cowever0 seedlings

should &e supplied to farmers at a considera&le fee as opposed to free distri&ution. This will ensure

that farmers place value on the seedlings they have purchased unlie free seedlings. Medium6term to long

term plans &y government and +,-s should &e geared towards developing self6sustaining seedling

supply nurseries ran &y private individuals dealing with species whose maret has developed

with farmers.

Efforts should &e made to encourage farmers to manage livestoc hus&andry &y either decreasing the

num&er of livestoc or controlled gra1ing systems for uality production to reduce land and


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environmental degradation. More safety measures on the protected areas such as fencing and guards to

avoid cattle and camel invasion Sensiti1ation of farmers to manage the area closures &y themselves and

protect the trees as well as applying indigenous conflict management and resolution mechanisms is

essential. %ntroduction of 1ero gra1ing system as opposed to free gra1ing and provision of improved

forages such as alfalfa0 elephant grass may &e necessary in the long6term. .


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REFERENCES

$arandang0 W.M.0 E.). Tolentino and 5.M. #osheto. 39@*. Smallholder Tree +ursery -perations in

Southern 'hilippines F Supporting Mechanisms for Tim&er Tree 4omestication. %nternational Tree $rops

5ournal 3in press*.

4awson %0 Carwood $0 5amnadass #0 !eniest 5 3eds.* 39;9* "groforestry tree domestication: a primer.

The World "groforestry $entre0 +airo&i0 Kenya. ;DB pp

4erero0 ". 39;9*. Evaluation of tree seeds and seedling system in Ethiopia with focus in Wolaita and

"rsi. "ddis "&a&a0 Ethiopia

5amnadass #C0 4awson %K0 (ran1el S0 )eaey ##!0 MithHfer 40 "innifesi (K0 Tchoundjeu I 39;;*

%mproving livelihoods and nutrition in su&6Saharan "frica through the promotion of indigenous and

e2otic fruit production in smallholders agroforestry systems: a review. %nternational (orest #eview0 ;>0

>>B6>3;*:A


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ANNE+ USEFUL CONTACTS

FARMER SEED DEALERS

NAME CONTACT 0OREDA CONTACT %Y

Telemariam Sime0 Korcho

,iranyi

=; @;< "lem Tena "lem Tena woreda office

Meseret "&u0 Shura 4a&i +o phone num&ers "lem Tena "lem Tena woreda office

Iee "&e&e =99 9B ;@B Wolenchiti Wolenchiti

Tate "shenafi =99 9B ;@B Wolenchiti Wolenchiti

!a1e1ou =;; >=B @> Ermias Melassa

Kasaye =;; D +eemte Meaneyesus

PRIVATE SEED DEALERS

Woleta sodo =;; >@< 9


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"wassa 'odo seed enterprise +o num&er "ddis "&a&a ,irma (#$

!ayou Tilahun6 ,reen Memis 'lc =;9 ;B >=@ "ddis "&a&a !ayou Tilahun


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DEVELOPMENT ORGANI/ATIONS DEALING 0ITH TREE SEEDS. SEEDLINGS

ORGANI/ATION NAME CONTACT PERSON TELEPHONE NUM%ER.

EMAIL

Ethiopian $atholic $hurch Social

4evelopment $oordinating

-ffice -f Mei 3Ecc6 Sdcom*

("J%S" M%4EKS"6 +#M

E'E#T

=;; ;


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Ethiopia Tree Seeds and Seedlings