Domestication of Ricinodendron Heudelotii (Baill.) Pierre ex. Pax. In the humid lowlands of Cameroon

• Published in: Ghana journal of science Vol. 39; pp. 3 - 8
• Main Authors: Mapongmetsem, P.M., Faculty of Science, University of Ngaoundere, P. 0. Box454,Ngaoundere, Cameroon, DuGuma, B., lRAD/ICRAF Project. P. 0. Box 2067, Yaounde, Cameroon, Nkongmeneck, B.A., Faculty of Science, University of Yaounde I, P. 0. Box 812, Yaounde, Cameroon
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: 1999
• Subjects: CAMEROON; CAMEROUN; CAMERUN; DOMESTICACION; DOMESTICATION; http://www.fao.org/aos/agrovoc#c_1229; http://www.fao.org/aos/agrovoc#c_2360; http://www.fao.org/aos/agrovoc#c_3688; HUMID ZONES; ZONA HUMEDA; ZONE HUMIDE
• ISSN: 0016-9544

Ricinodendron heudelotti is one of the top ranking indigenous multipurpose tree species retained for improvement in the humid lowlands of West Africa. It is a common species known as Djangsang in Cameroon, producing highly oleaginous nutritious seeds. It is harvested by local populations for consumption and sale. In addition, it is an integral part of traditional farming systems and therefore, is protected in cropping fields. There is, therefore, an urgent need for its domestication. Phenology and propagation are among the first steps of the domestication process. Therefore, to know the probable fruiting period of the species, a weekly phenological study was undertaken in three localities at each of two sites in the forest zone of Cameroon from July 1989 to July 1992.The experimental design was a 2 x 3 factorial located in a randomized complete block design with three replications. The sites (Yaounde, Sangmelima) were taken as the main treatments while years (1989, 1990, 1991), during which observations were carried out, were considered as sub-treatments. The effect of site"year and their interaction were significant respectively at 0.05, 0.01 and 0.001 level of probabilities. To overcome seed dormancy, a germination test was carried out in the laboratory using a randomized complete block design with four replicates and five treatments. The experimental unit was made up of 60 seeds.Results indicated a significant difference between treatments. Hand scarification increased the germination rate up 60 per cent, whereas the control gave a germination rate of only 3.33 per cent. Due to the dioecious nature of the species (separate male and female plants), vegetative propagation by cuttings was conducted in the open field. The experimental design was a split-plot design with three replicates. The main plot was the type of wood (basal, median and extreme) whereas the sub-plot was the position of the cutting (vertical, slanting). The experimental unit was made up of 20 cuttings. Significant difference was observed between the types of wood (P=O.05) as indicated by the median wood which showed a high sprouting potential.