Evaluating the Performance of Tef ( <i>Eragrostis Tef</i> [ <i>Zucc</i> .] <i>Trotter</i> ) Varieties Under Varying Rates of Blended NPSB Fertilizer in the Tembaro Area, Central Ethiopia

The Tef crop is significant in Ethiopia for domestic use and as a revenue source. However, the productivity of Tef is hampered by poor soil fertility and a lack of fertilizer recommendations tailored to different Tef varieties. In 2023, a field experiment was conducted in Tembaro District, Central Ethiopia, to address these issues. The main objective of this study was to determine the optimal blended NPSB fertilizer rates for different Tef varieties. Four NPSB fertilizer rates (0, 45, 90, and 135 kg/ha) and four Tef varieties [Local Check, Quncho, Tsedey (Cr‐37), and Bosset] with a seed rate of 7.5 kg/ha were used. The experiment used a randomized complete block design with three replications. Growth, yield, and other data were collected and analyzed using SAS 9.4. The results showed significant ( p &lt; 0.05) interaction effects between variety and fertilizer rate for most measured traits, like days to 50% emergence, days to 50% flowering, and panicle length. Compared to the other variety‐fertilizer combinations analyzed, the study showed that the Quncho, when applied 135 kg/ha of nitrogen, phosphorus, sulfur, boron (NPSB) fertilizer, had the highest grain yield (2.33 t/ha), straw yield (3.20283 t/ha), total biomass output (5.5328 t/ha), and harvest index (HI) (42%). The Quncho variety yielded a net benefit of 134,014 Ethiopian Birr and had the highest marginal rate of return (MRR%) at 1060%. These findings indicated that farmers in the area can increase the yield of Tef by applied with 135 kg/ha of NPSB fertilizer together with the Quncho variety. Additional multiseason research is required to confirm the present findings and offer detailed suggestions.