Adaptation and Growth Performance of Different Bamboo Species in Highland Area of Bale, Oromia Region, Southeast Ethiopia

This study was conducted aimed to introduce different exotic bamboo species to Bale via evaluating their adaptability and growth performance under the field condition of Bale highland area, Ethiopia. For hundreds of years, Ethiopia was limited to two native bamboo species. The introduction of foreign species to the nation began in 2007 with the goal of diversifying the genetic base of the resource. Since then, studies on the species' adaptability have been carried out over the nation in an effort to comprehend their potential eco-zone, albeit no prior attempts have been done in the Bale zone, the current study region. Thus, ten bamboo species were introduced and evaluated for their adaptability at Sinana Agricultural research center in highland area of Bale, Ethiopia. The mean value of survival rate was recorded within a range of 22.22% in Y. alpina to 96.30% D. dienbienensis among the studied species. Culm height ranged 18.30 in Y. alpina to 371.70 cm in D. dienbienensis while Culm diameter was within range of 1.12 B. lapidea to 2.93 cm in D. dienbienensis. Furthermore, maximum number of culms was recorded in D. dienbienensis followed by D. “sp.”, D. asper, B. longinternode and D. membranaceus, respectively. On other hand, B. longinternode had the highest number of nodes (14.33) whereas the dominant internode length (30.53 cm) recorded in D. membranaceus. D. dienbienensis, D. membranaceus, D. asper, B. polymorpha, B. longinternode, and D. barbatus showed greater potential for adaptability than the others, according to the data. Because of their many advantages in the research region, they might be marketed to users as an alternative bamboo species resource. However, because bamboo species require a long time to set seed, research into their identification and vegetative propagation strategy development is advised.