Tef (<i>Eragrostis tef</i>) Variety "Dagim"

Abstract

Tef is the major Ethiopian cereal grown on 3.02 million hectares annually and serving as staple food grain for over 70 million people. However, the national average yield of tef is low 1.6 t ha^-1. This is partially due to the use of unimproved local cultivars, and biotic and abiotic stresses. Therefore the experiment was designed to develop high yielding and desirable quality improved varieties suitable for diverse agro-ecologies, farming systems and purposes. Fourteen tef genotypes including two checks were laid out in randomized complete block design using four replications for two years (2012 and 2013) at eight locations. Results of combined data analysis across locations and over the years showed that candidate variety Dagem [DZ-Cr-387 X Kay Murri (DZ-Cr-438 (RIL No 91A))] performed better than the two check and other test genotypes. Thus, Dagim was identified and released as best promising tef variety for production in the country.