comparative studies on growth performance of three indigenous and onernendemic tree species of Ethiopia, viz. Cordia africana Lam., Crotonrnmacrostachyus (Hochst Ex Del.), Podocarpus falcatus (Thunb.) Mirb. andrnMillettia ferruginea (Hochst.) Baker were conducted over a period of 8rnmonths. The study was carried out within the landholdings of the Center forrnIndigenous Trees Propagation and Biodiversity Development at Tulu-Korma,rnabout 48 km west of Addis Ababa. Tree seedlings of 88 C. africana, 348 C.rnmacrostachyus, 256 P. falcatus and 303 M. ferruginea were planted on anrnarea of 7,682 square meters five months before the start of this study. Eachrnseedling was assigned a random numerical code for further follow-uprnstudies. Watering, mulching, adding manure, and prevention measuresrnfrom herbivore damage and weeding were handled by workers of the Center.rnData on height and survival percentage were collected every 45 days (in 6-rnrounds, including data collected at time 0). Root collar diameterrnmeasurements of each coded tree were taken along with the last heightrnmeasurements. Analyses of variance and Tukeyâ€™s HSD tests were employedrnto assess the results at p=0.05. Data taken on young trees height were alsornused for plotting the relative growth rate for height measurements followingrnpreviously adopted procedures. The analyses showed significant differencesrnin growth changes of the tree species studied. Overall relative growth rate inrnheight (RGRH) of M. ferruginea was found to be the highest, attaining a rnvalue of 0.0045. C. macrostachyus and C. africana stood second and third,rnwith RGRH values of 0.0036 and 0.0035, respectively. There was nornsignificant difference between the relative growth rates of C. africana and C.rnmacrostachyus. P. falcatus had the lowest relative growth rate value of,rn0.0028. Of the four indigenous tree species, M. ferruginea attained thernmaximum overall change in mean height of 35.3 cm. Its root collar diameterrnvalue ranked second (1.44 cm) next to C. africana (2.23 cm). The survivalrnpercentage was very high in all the four species, ranging between 98.86 andrn100 %. Comparison of the major soil properties of the study site indicatedrnthat the area is well below the average values, with total nitrogen of 0.1%rncompared to the standard average value of 0.2-0.5%; organic carbon ofrn1.2%, compared to the standard average value of 4-10%; and availablernphosphorus of 2.3 ppm, compared to the standard average value of 14-19rnppm. The only soil parameter that fell within the normal range was pH (6.0).rnThis work concludes that, despite the poor nutrient status of the site,rngrowth performance and survival percentage of the four indigenous treernspecies were reasonably good, indicating the potential of indigenous trees torngrow on degraded sites provided that intensive management, along withrnprovision of water during the hot, dry season are maintained.rnKey words: Tulu-Korma, survival percentage, root collar diameter, growthrnperformance, degraded site