Significance of Vetivar Grass (Chrysopogon zizanioides) in Coffee Based Farming System of Ethiopian (A Review)

Abstract

Vetiver grass (Vetiveria zizanioides L) is very valuable grass species.  It is distributed mainly in Asia, Africa, and America. This plant species is considered as an excellent erosion control over many parts of the world. The unique deep rooting system of vetiver helps to prevent soil erosion and water run-off. Most coffee growing areas of Ethiopia are steep and gently sloppy areas which requires terracing and erosion control. Jimma Agricultural Research Center (JARC) of the Ethiopian Institute of Agricultural Research introduced vetiver grass for the first time to JARC, Ethiopia. The coffee research center contributed more to exploit the unique nature of vetivar that it grows under extreme and wide range of ecological and soil conditions. Research from Jimma Agricultural Research Center (JARC) has demonstrated that rainfall runoff is very significantly reduced by use of vetiver hedges, even on bare land, the soil loss is also dramatically reduced by the third year of establishment. The research carried out in other parts of the world indicated that due to improved soil moisture retention and soil fertility preservation, significant crop yield increases have been recorded between 30-50 per cent - when farmers make use of vetiver hedgerows. Ethiopian farmers and modern coffee farms also benefit from using vetiver as mulch, improving soil organic matter and nutrient recycling. Different coffee farms are also thriving to adopt the technology for treating the effluent discharged from coffee pulpery. The significance of vetivar plant in Ethiopian agriculture can benefit not only for conservation purpose but also it is becoming almost vital in coffee production system due to its diverse value in the sector. Currently most conservationists and agriculturalists agree that the use of Vetivar system in Ethiopia should be scaled-up, as well as introduced for non-farm purposes to exploit its additional advantages.