Effect of pearl millet and sorghum seed quality on stand establishment in Botswana -- 1. farmer field experiments : stand establishment and yield, 1986/87

Seed characteristics, particularly size and density, are important in stand establishment and, in some cases, yield. This study evaluated the effects of seed characteristics on stand establishment and yield in farmers" fields in Botswana in conjunction with two ongoing farming systems programs, Agricultural Technology Improvement Project (ATIP) and Agricultural Development "Ngamiland Project (ADNP). In the Etsha villages near Gumare, bold (large and dense) millet seed was compared with control seed using both conventional hill and rotary jab planting methods. In the Francistown and Mahalaype areas, millet (bold and control) and sorghum (dense and control) seed characteristics were compared under conventional broadcast planting. Bold millet or dense sorghum seed did not improve establishment. Median values for the stands showed that bold millet seed produced a higher establishment percentage and a slightly higher population than control seed, at least for short durations following planting. (Author abstract)