Table 7 Folk classification of enset landraces in Wolaita, Southern Ethiopia
Folk classification bases | Categories* | Characteristics of landrace in each category | Landraces recorded in each category (%) (N = 67) |
|---|---|---|---|
Domestication status | Wild (Talahe uutta) | Sexually reproduced; occurring naturally in river banks and swampy areas; | NA |
Cultivated | Vegetatively propagated: it occurs in homegarden under farmers' management | 67 (100%) | |
'Gender' of landrace | Female (Macca uutta) | Early maturing, more tender, with edible corms | 24 (36%) |
Male (Attuma uutta) | Late maturing, fibrous, vigorous, stress tolerant, with non-edible corms | 28 (42%) | |
Use-value of landrace | Food use (Katta uutta) | Mainly used for enset based foods (Uncca, Itima and Doyisa uutta) | 59 (88%) |
Non-food Use (Harra goa uutta) | Mainly used as a source for fiber, fodder, firewood, medicine, and water | 8 (12%) | |
Eco-geographic (Altitude) adaptability | Highland (Geziya uutta) | Some landraces are preferentially (e.g. Argama, Maziya) cultivated in highland, although their cultivation also occurs in lowland, otherwise no difference exists between landraces on basis of agro-ecology | NSL |
Lowland (Gara uutta) | NSL |