Abstract:
Ethiopia is a home for a number of food crop varieties suited to the dry and high temperature
conditions. It varies from Denakil Desert to cool wet alpine highlands in climate variability.
The vigorous indigenous crops were growing in a diversified manner in their agroecological
suitable area across Ethiopia as well as Gumara watershed. But starting from some years
back, the diversely growing of those crops are affected by climate variability. The study area
is one of the richest areas in indigenous crop types and faced with the aforementioned
problem. Thus, the study aimed to analyse the trend of climate and the decadal dynamics of
the crop diversity in the watershed. The Gridded Satellite and observed historical climate
data from 1987-2016 period and crop-climate history were the data sources. Using the MannKendall
test and Sen’s Slopes estimator, for trend, rating of Food and Agriculture
Organization crop-climate requirement, for crop diversity dynamics were employed methods
of data analysis respectively. The result indicated non-significantly increasing of decadal
Kiremit rainfall in 27mm at Weyna Dega and 43mm at Dega agroecological zones. The
kiremit season temperature variables are in a statistically significant increasing trends at all
zones. In general, 0.4
o
c of decadal increments of minimum and maximum and 0.5
c of mean
temperature increment is recorded in the watershed. The recent period of decadal increment
in maximum temperature negatively affecting most selected indigenous crops at the lower
elevation and helps to move the crops forward to the higher elevation. The local farmers
perception results agreed with the historical climate data analysis. Improved crop verities
shall be introduced to the watershed agroecological zones. The traditional agroecological
zone classification system of Ethiopia must be systematically updated. In order to detect the
detail information on crop-climate associations/ effects of climate variability on crop
diversity, the yearly analysis rather than decadal analysis; shall be suggested respectively for
governments and future researches.