Cowpea (vigna Unguiculata (l.)walp.) (fabaceae) Landrace Diversity In Southern Ethiopia

The present research has been carried out to identify and document the landrace diversity andrnethnobotanical uses of cowpea (Vigna unguiculata (L.) Walp.) (Fabaceae) in three regions ofrnsouthern Ethiopia (Gambella, Oromia, Dire Dawa and SNNPR). Ethnobotanical data wererncollected using semi-structured interview, field observations, guided field walk and marketrnsurvey. The data were analyzed using descriptive statistics, preference ranking and informantrnconsensus. A total of 44 accessions were collected from different geographical locations of southrnof Addis Ababa. These landraces had diverse seed sizes, colors, growth habits and germinationrnpotentials. Among the collections, Vigna unguiculata subspecies dekindtiana farmers varietyrnRAPO (Anywaa language) was found in Gambella Region), subspecies cylindrica and subspeciesrnunguiculata farmers’ variety ATERA BABILE (Afaan Oromo) found in all regions of southernrnEthiopia and grown for the purposes of human food, livestock feed, improving soil fertility andrnas medicinal plant. Other collections, Vingna unguiculata subspecies unguiculata farmers’rnvariety ATERA BABILE was preferred by the majority of farmers’ because of its spreading nature,rnability to produce more leaves than other varieties, improving soil fertility and ability tornsupersede weeds via ground covering. All in all ten landrace varieties were recorded fromrnsouthern Ethiopia in which four were recorded in SNNPR, three in Oromia three in Gambellarnand one in Dire Dawa. As indicated by local farmers, wild relatives of cowpea still persist inrnsouthern Ethiopia. Therefore, conducting further researches on both local landraces and wildrnrelatives of cowpea is recommended in this study.rnKey words:- Landrace, Cowpea, Ethnobotany, Intercropping, Sole cropping

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