Effect of Mixed plantation on growth performance and above ground biomass of Eucalyptus globulus in highland area of central Ethiopia region

Effect of Mixed plantation on growth performance and above ground biomass of Eucalyptus globulus in highland area of central Ethiopia region | Research Square window.SnipcartSettings = { analytics: { enabled: false } }; (function() { var accessVector = localStorage.getItem('access_vector') || ''; window.dataLayer = window.dataLayer || []; if (accessVector) { window.dataLayer.push({ user: { profile: { profileInfo: { snid: accessVector } } } }); } })(); (function(w,d,s,l,i){w[l]=w[l]||[];w[l].push({'gtm.start':new Date().getTime(),event:'gtm.js'});var f=d.getElementsByTagName(s)[0],j=d.createElement(s),dl=l!='dataLayer'?'&l='+l:'';j.async=true;j.src='https://www.googletagmanager.com/gtm.js?id='+i+dl;f.parentNode.insertBefore(j,f);})(window,document,'script','dataLayer','GTM-K279D39R'); Browse Preprints In Review Journals COVID-19 Preprints AJE Video Bytes Research Tools Research Promotion AJE Professional Editing AJE Rubriq About Preprint Platform In Review Editorial Policies Our Team Advisory Board Help Center Sign In Submit a Preprint Cite Share Download PDF Research Article Effect of Mixed plantation on growth performance and above ground biomass of Eucalyptus globulus in highland area of central Ethiopia region Begashaw Mitiku¹, Fikiru Bafa¹, Niway Amiha¹, Getahun Yaekob This is a preprint; it has not been peer reviewed by a journal. https://doi.org/ 10.21203/rs.3.rs-9653427/v1 This work is licensed under a CC BY 4.0 License Status: Posted Version 1 posted You are reading this latest preprint version Abstract Monoculture plantations, particularly of Eucalyptus species, have faced criticism for their negative environmental impacts and limited contributions to biodiversity and local livelihoods. Mixed-species plantations are promoted as a more sustainable alternative, yet their adoption remains limited. This study evaluated the early-stage growth performance, yield, and aboveground biomass of E.globulus in mixed plantations with four indigenous and exotic tree species— H. abyssinica, P. falcatus, C. lusitanica , and J. procera —in the highland area of Gummer district, central Ethiopia. A randomized complete block design with three replications was used, and data on height, diameter, survival, biomass, and carbon density were collected over four years. Results showed no significant negative effects of mixing on E. globulus growth, survival, or biomass accumulation compared to monoculture. Mixed stands, particularly those with J. procera and C. lusitanica , showed numerically higher growth rates and relative yields. Aboveground biomass and carbon density of E. globulus were comparable across treatments, while companion species contributed additional biomass, enhancing overall stand carbon stocks. The findings suggest that mixed-species plantations can serve as a viable alternative to monocultures without compromising the early productivity of E. globulus . Biomass Climate change E.globulus Growth performance Mixed plantation Full Text Additional Declarations No competing interests reported. Cite Share Download PDF Status: Posted Version 1 posted You are reading this latest preprint version Research Square lets you share your work early, gain feedback from the community, and start making changes to your manuscript prior to peer review in a journal. As a division of Research Square Company, we’re committed to making research communication faster, fairer, and more useful. We do this by developing innovative software and high quality services for the global research community. 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Also discoverable on Platform About Our Team In Review Editorial Policies Advisory Board Help Center Resources Author Services Accessibility API Access RSS feed Manage Cookie Preferences © Research Square 2026 | ISSN 2693-5015 (online) Privacy Policy Terms of Service Do Not Sell My Personal Information {"props":{"pageProps":{"initialData":{"identity":"rs-9653427","acceptedTermsAndConditions":true,"allowDirectSubmit":false,"archivedVersions":[],"articleType":"Research Article","associatedPublications":[],"authors":[{"id":637985189,"identity":"7c8ef985-d7f1-483f-868f-b290a3d694b3","order_by":0,"name":"Begashaw Mitiku¹","email":"data:image/png;base64,iVBORw0KGgoAAAANSUhEUgAAAZAAAAAyAQMAAABI0h/eAAAABlBMVEX///8AAABVwtN+AAAACXBIWXMAAA7EAAAOxAGVKw4bAAAA0UlEQVRIiWNgGAWjYBACAxCRwCBhwMDeAOJaEKslAaiF5wCIK0GkFqA1BgwSCSAWEVrM2duvbnj4w8LY4Obzqxt+FEgw8Ld3J+DVYtlzpuwG0GFmBrdzym72AB0mcebsBvwOu5GTBtJiA9SSdoMHqMVAIpeAlvtvoFpunkm7+YcoLTfYj0EcBmTcJsoWy54cthsJaRLGkmdy2G7LGEjwEPSLOfvxZzd/2NQZ9h0HMt78sZHjb+/Fr4WBgccAhcFDQDkIsD9AZ4yCUTAKRsEoQAUAZqZLviepKpoAAAAASUVORK5CYII=","orcid":"","institution":"Central Ethiopia agricultural Research institute Durame","correspondingAuthor":true,"prefix":"","firstName":"Begashaw","middleName":"","lastName":"Mitiku¹","suffix":""},{"id":637985190,"identity":"84e8514b-24c7-4b75-8581-44f4ae74f253","order_by":1,"name":"Fikiru Bafa¹","email":"","orcid":"","institution":"Central Ethiopia agricultural Research institute Durame","correspondingAuthor":false,"prefix":"","firstName":"Fikiru","middleName":"","lastName":"Bafa¹","suffix":""},{"id":637985191,"identity":"a16f068b-4351-4eb5-a48e-7a407d81db5b","order_by":2,"name":"Niway Amiha¹","email":"","orcid":"","institution":"Central Ethiopia agricultural Research institute Durame","correspondingAuthor":false,"prefix":"","firstName":"Niway","middleName":"","lastName":"Amiha¹","suffix":""},{"id":637985192,"identity":"859e4834-707f-4b08-a5f2-4e3ac4b9b663","order_by":3,"name":"Getahun Yaekob","email":"","orcid":"","institution":"Central Ethiopia agricultural Research institute Durame","correspondingAuthor":false,"prefix":"","firstName":"Getahun","middleName":"","lastName":"Yaekob","suffix":""}],"badges":[],"createdAt":"2026-05-08 11:23:59","currentVersionCode":1,"declarations":"","doi":"10.21203/rs.3.rs-9653427/v1","doiUrl":"https://doi.org/10.21203/rs.3.rs-9653427/v1","draftVersion":[],"editorialEvents":[],"editorialNote":"","failedWorkflow":false,"files":[{"id":109041023,"identity":"09130d12-bf6f-433c-a13f-331a8a12200e","added_by":"auto","created_at":"2026-05-12 03:52:28","extension":"pdf","order_by":1,"title":"","display":"","copyAsset":false,"role":"manuscript-pdf","size":722513,"visible":true,"origin":"","legend":"","description":"","filename":"updatedEvaluationofEucalyptusglobulusforMixedPlantationwithIndigenousandExoticTreeSpeciesintheCentralHighlandsofEthiopia3.pdf","url":"https://assets-eu.researchsquare.com/files/rs-9653427/v1_covered_bd04fe6d-9208-4e7b-a48b-420e1e236ccb.pdf"}],"financialInterests":"No competing interests reported.","formattedTitle":"Effect of Mixed plantation on growth performance and above ground biomass of Eucalyptus globulus in highland area of central Ethiopia region","fulltext":[],"fulltextSource":"","fullText":"","funders":[],"hasAdminPriorityOnWorkflow":false,"hasManuscriptDocX":false,"hasOptedInToPreprint":true,"hasPassedJournalQc":"","hasAnyPriority":true,"hideJournal":true,"highlight":"","institution":"","isAcceptedByJournal":false,"isAuthorSuppliedPdf":true,"isDeskRejected":"","isHiddenFromSearch":false,"isInQc":false,"isInWorkflow":false,"isPdf":true,"isPdfUpToDate":true,"isWithdrawnOrRetracted":false,"journal":{"display":true,"email":"[email protected]","identity":"researchsquare","isNatureJournal":false,"hasQc":true,"allowDirectSubmit":true,"externalIdentity":"","sideBox":"","snPcode":"","submissionUrl":"/submission","title":"Research Square","twitterHandle":"researchsquare","acdcEnabled":true,"dfaEnabled":false,"editorialSystem":"","reportingPortfolio":"","inReviewEnabled":false,"inReviewRevisionsEnabled":true},"keywords":"Biomass, Climate change, E.globulus, Growth performance, Mixed plantation","lastPublishedDoi":"10.21203/rs.3.rs-9653427/v1","lastPublishedDoiUrl":"https://doi.org/10.21203/rs.3.rs-9653427/v1","license":{"name":"CC BY 4.0","url":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/"},"manuscriptAbstract":"\u003cp\u003eMonoculture plantations, particularly of Eucalyptus species, have faced criticism for their negative environmental impacts and limited contributions to biodiversity and local livelihoods. Mixed-species plantations are promoted as a more sustainable alternative, yet their adoption remains limited. This study evaluated the early-stage growth performance, yield, and aboveground biomass of \u003cb\u003eE.globulus\u003c/b\u003e in mixed plantations with four indigenous and exotic tree species\u0026mdash;\u003cb\u003eH. abyssinica, P. falcatus, C. lusitanica\u003c/b\u003e, and \u003cb\u003eJ. procera\u003c/b\u003e\u0026mdash;in the highland area of Gummer district, central Ethiopia. A randomized complete block design with three replications was used, and data on height, diameter, survival, biomass, and carbon density were collected over four years. Results showed no significant negative effects of mixing on \u003cb\u003eE. globulus\u003c/b\u003e growth, survival, or biomass accumulation compared to monoculture. Mixed stands, particularly those with \u003cb\u003eJ. procera\u003c/b\u003e and \u003cb\u003eC. lusitanica\u003c/b\u003e, showed numerically higher growth rates and relative yields. Aboveground biomass and carbon density of \u003cb\u003eE. globulus\u003c/b\u003e were comparable across treatments, while companion species contributed additional biomass, enhancing overall stand carbon stocks. The findings suggest that mixed-species plantations can serve as a viable alternative to monocultures without compromising the early productivity of \u003cb\u003eE. globulus\u003c/b\u003e.\u003c/p\u003e","manuscriptTitle":"Effect of Mixed plantation on growth performance and above ground biomass of Eucalyptus globulus in highland area of central Ethiopia region","msid":"","msnumber":"","nonDraftVersions":[{"code":1,"date":"2026-05-12 03:52:09","doi":"10.21203/rs.3.rs-9653427/v1","editorialEvents":[{"type":"communityComments","content":0}],"status":"published","journal":{"display":true,"email":"[email protected]","identity":"researchsquare","isNatureJournal":false,"hasQc":true,"allowDirectSubmit":true,"externalIdentity":"","sideBox":"","snPcode":"","submissionUrl":"/submission","title":"Research Square","twitterHandle":"researchsquare","acdcEnabled":true,"dfaEnabled":false,"editorialSystem":"","reportingPortfolio":"","inReviewEnabled":false,"inReviewRevisionsEnabled":true}}],"origin":"","ownerIdentity":"ecbe126a-2eef-4398-8772-2f5e6a7e2653","owner":[],"postedDate":"May 12th, 2026","published":true,"recentEditorialEvents":[{"type":"editorAssigned","content":"","date":"2026-05-16T06:42:50+00:00","index":"","fulltext":""},{"type":"checksComplete","content":"","date":"2026-05-16T06:41:52+00:00","index":"","fulltext":""},{"type":"submitted","content":"Discover Environment","date":"2026-05-08T11:10:53+00:00","index":"","fulltext":""}],"rejectedJournal":[],"revision":"","amendment":"","status":"posted","subjectAreas":[],"tags":[],"updatedAt":"2026-05-12T03:52:09+00:00","versionOfRecord":[],"versionCreatedAt":"2026-05-12 03:52:09","video":"","vorDoi":"","vorDoiUrl":"","workflowStages":[]},"version":"v1","identity":"rs-9653427","journalConfig":"researchsquare"},"__N_SSP":true},"page":"/article/[identity]/[[...version]]","query":{"redirect":"/article/rs-9653427","identity":"rs-9653427","version":["v1"]},"buildId":"XKTyCvWXoU3ODBz1xrDgd","isFallback":false,"isExperimentalCompile":false,"dynamicIds":[84888],"gssp":true,"scriptLoader":[]}