BUSH ENCROACHMENT CONTROL DEMONSTRATIONS AND MANAGEMENT IMPLICATIONS ON HERBACEOUS SPECIES IN SAVANNAS OF SOUTHERN ETHIOPIA

Proper management of bush control methods need to be effectively demonstrated to resource users. In this paper, authors evaluated effects of disturbance control, tree cutting, fire and grazing, the old traditional method of applying fire and grazing by herders, grazing with bush cover and tree cutting alone on herbaceous species composition, abundance, biomass, basal cover and species diversity in southern Ethiopia. The disturbance control demonstration showed no advantage in terms of biomass and basal cover over other treatments, although herbaceous species richness was improved. Disturbance control demonstration showed no advantage in terms of biomass and basal cover over other treatments, although herbaceous species richness was improved. Bush removal such as tree cutting and fire, tree cutting followed by fire and grazing, fire and grazing, and tree cutting alone improved herbaceous biomass, basal cover and species diversity, while grazing alone greatly reduced herbaceous biomass.