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Influence of storage duration on field sprouting, maturity and yield of some garlic (Allium sativum L.) cultivars at Debre Zeit, Ethiopia

Summary Garlic (Allium sativum L.) cloves remain dormant for a long time after physiological maturity. Use of cloves as planting material before completion of their innate dormancy period leads to uneven sprouting and maturity, and makes harvesting difficult. The purpose of our study was, therefore, to identify the appropriate duration of storage of cloves under ambient conditions in the Ethiopian highlands, before they are used for planting, and to asses their performance in the field. Four locally selected garlic cultivars (W-011, W-014, G-457 and G-571) were field planted at Debre Zeit Agricultural Research Center after 2, 4, 6, 8, 10 and 12 weeks of storage in a ventilated mesh-wired store at ambient temperature. The field experiment was conducted using a randomized complete block design with three replications for a period three seasons. There was an increase in percent cumulative sprouting and time to crop maturity from planting with increased duration of storage. The different storage durations took 11.2, 10.6, 9.4, 8.7, 7.4 and 6.5 weeks, respectively, to attain maximum field sprouting. However, there was a decline in the maximum sprouting attained and yield after 10 weeks of storage. In two of the three seasons, cultivar G-457, which had the lowest percent sprouting, also had the lowest percent of bulbs reaching maturity. Wide seasonal variations were observed in all parameters. Based on these results it was concluded that garlic cloves may require more than 12 weeks of ambient temperature and RH storage for more uniform sprouting, maturity and good bulb yield.