Research Article

Participatory Evaluation of Faba Bean (Vicia faba L.) Varieties for Yield and Yield Components in the Kaffa zone, South-west, Ethiopia

Tesfaye Tarekegn^*and Tesfaye Belay

Bonga Agricultural Research Centre, P.O. Box 101, Bonga, Ethiopia

*Corresponding author e-mail: tesfayetarekegn2020@gmail.com

(Received: 02/04/2026; Revised: 30/05/2026; Accepted: 15/06/2026; Published: 20/06/2026)

ABSTRACT

Faba bean (Vicia faba L.) is a versatile legume known for its high protein content and ability to improve soil fertility. Its production has been shown to reduce the carbon footprint of cereal-based agricultural production systems by fixing nitrogen that can be used by the succeeding cereal crop and by breaking the cycle of biotic stresses (Jensen et al. 2010). Productivity of improved varieties is higher (3.5 t/ha) than the country’s average yield (1.8 t/ha). Participatory variety selection was conducted in the Kaffa Zone, Adiyo Woreda, and Boka Kebele, both at the farmer training centre (FTC) and on farmers’ fields, during the 2021 main cropping season, to evaluate and select high-yielding faba bean varieties by participating farmers and other stakeholders. Seven released faba bean varieties (Walki, Dosha, Tumsa, Gora, Gabalcho, Degaga, and Hachalu), including a local check, were tested using Randomized Complete Block Design with three replications at one station of each trial site. The mother trial was done at the farmer training centre (FTC), whereas the baby trials were done at twenty farmers’ fields in the districts. The ANOVA revealed that significant differences (p<0.01) were observed among varieties for plant height, pods per plant, seeds per pod, 100-seed weight, and grain yield. Among the tested varieties, the variety Walki (2729.5) and the variety gora (2505) Kgha^-1 are high-yielding varieties and also preference rankings for grain yield, plant height, pod number, disease resistance, and unelongated habitués. Thus, these two varieties are preferred by most of the farmers. Therefore, based on farmers’ preference and biological data, the varieties walki and gora are identified as the best-performing and preferred varieties and recommended to the study area.

Keywords: Mother trial, baby trial, faba bean, participatory evaluation

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