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Abstract

Rangelands are essential ecosystems for livestock grazing, wildlife conservation and other uses. However, East African rangelands face multifaceted challenges of land degradation exacerbated by climate change. This study examined the impact of manure and grass-legume mixtures on herbaceous plant species diversity, cover, and biomass production in the Karamoja border region between Kenya and Uganda. Using a randomised complete block design, four treatments, these being grasses (G), grasses with legumes (G+L), grasses with manure (G+M), and grasses with legumes and manure (G+L+M), were applied to the study sites, alongside natural regeneration and open grazing areas. A total of 97 herbaceous species were identified, with 66 species recorded in West Pokot and 54 in Napak. The dominant species were Bothriochloa insculpta in West Pokot and Heteropogon contortus in Napak. The reseeded grasses Cenchrus ciliaris and Chloris gayana were more frequent in the West Pokot and Napak sites, respectively, while Macroptilium atropurpureum was the most frequently-occurring legume across both sites. Natural regeneration and the G+L treatment exhibited the highest species diversity (12 species) while G+M treatments yielded the highest biomass, attaining 1 458 kg ha-1 in West Pokot and 2 299 kg ha-1 in Napak. The findings highlight the potential of integrating native grasses, forage legumes and manure to restore degraded rangelands and enhance forage production.

Keywords

biomass production; forage legumes; herbaceous layer; land degradation; manure

Published in

African Journal of Range and Forage Science
2025

SLU Authors

UKÄ Subject classification

Environmental Sciences and Nature Conservation
Ecology

Publication identifier

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.2989/10220119.2025.2570704

Permanent link to this page (URI)

https://res.slu.se/id/publ/145529