Après l'effondrement du régime de Siyad Barre, la Somalie a perdu toutes ses institutions de recherche agricole. Cela s'est traduit par des conséquences négatives sur la disponibilité d'aliments et la stabilité du secteur semencier. L'amélioration des ressources génétiques autochtones peut constituer un premier pas pour rétablir la sécurité alimentaire. Le sorgho (Sorghum bicolor (L.) Moench) est une importante céréale dans les zones pluviales de la Somalie où elle représente une des principales sources d'aliments et de fourrage. Huit caractéristiques morphologiques et productives ont été choisies pour évaluer la variabilité phénotypique de sept accessions collectées dans la Somalie du sud. On a utilisé des méthodes d'analyse univariées (ANOVA) et multivariées (analyse discriminante et de regroupements) pour évaluer la variation productive dans les accessions et pour grouper les accessions sur la base des données quantitatives. Les résultats ont indiqué qu'il y a une ample diversité morpho-agronomique parmi les accessions, spécialement pour ce qui concerne certaines caractéristiques exploitables pour différentes utilisations, comme la production de grains et/ou de fourrage. En outre, les variétés locales ont été capables de se développer et de produire en conditions environnementales très difficiles. Les informations obtenues peuvent être utilisées pour promouvoir la conservation et l'amélioration futures des variétés locales du sorgho, en aidant à stabiliser les possibilités d'approvisionnement d'une source d'aliments de subsistance pour les agriculteurs de la Somalie du sud.
After the collapse of Siyad Barre' regime, Somalia lost any form of agricultural research with negative consequences on food availability and seed sector stability. A first step to restore food security can be represented by enhancing local genetic resources. Sorghum (Sorghum bicolor (L.) Moench) is a very important crop in rainfed areas of Somalia serving as primary source of food and forage. Eight morphological and productive characteristics were chosen to assess the phenotypic variability of 7 accessions from South Somalia. Univariate (ANOVA) and multivariate (discriminant and cluster analysis) methods were used to assess the productive variation within the accession and to group the 7 accessions into clusters based on quantitative characters. The results showed that there is a wide morpho-agronomical diversity among accessions, especially regarding specific features suitable for different purpose, such as grain and/or forage production. Moreover the landraces were able to grow and produce under harsh environmental conditions. The gathered information can be used to promote the conservation and future improvement of local sorghum landraces, thus aiding in the stabilisation of a secure and sustainable food resource for farmers of southern Somalia.
Agro-biodiversity in subsistence farming systems of South Somalia - Collection and agronomic assessment of Somali sorghum (Sorghum bicolor (L.) Moench) germplasm
Manzelli M;
2006
Abstract
After the collapse of Siyad Barre' regime, Somalia lost any form of agricultural research with negative consequences on food availability and seed sector stability. A first step to restore food security can be represented by enhancing local genetic resources. Sorghum (Sorghum bicolor (L.) Moench) is a very important crop in rainfed areas of Somalia serving as primary source of food and forage. Eight morphological and productive characteristics were chosen to assess the phenotypic variability of 7 accessions from South Somalia. Univariate (ANOVA) and multivariate (discriminant and cluster analysis) methods were used to assess the productive variation within the accession and to group the 7 accessions into clusters based on quantitative characters. The results showed that there is a wide morpho-agronomical diversity among accessions, especially regarding specific features suitable for different purpose, such as grain and/or forage production. Moreover the landraces were able to grow and produce under harsh environmental conditions. The gathered information can be used to promote the conservation and future improvement of local sorghum landraces, thus aiding in the stabilisation of a secure and sustainable food resource for farmers of southern Somalia.I documenti in IRIS sono protetti da copyright e tutti i diritti sono riservati, salvo diversa indicazione.