Ensete ventricosum (Welw.) Cheesman is mainly propagated vegetatively through corm division, yet the mechanisms underlying developmental divergence among landraces during early regeneration, and how these early differences extend across the full developmental cycle, remain poorly understood. Although previous research explored socio-ecological drivers of enset resilience in Sidama, how landraces differ during early regeneration remains unclear. To address this gap, this study evaluated early-stage morpho-physiological plasticity in five contrasting landraces (cultivated non-clonal, cultivated naturally clonal, and wild) under uniform field conditions across BBCH stages 12–19, starting from the corm prior to sucker transplanting. Significant effects of landrace, developmental stage, and their interaction (P ≤ 0.05) revealed noticeable genotypic differentiation and stage-dependent plasticity. Planned contrasts confirmed that cultivated landraces differed significantly from the wild landrace, and that clonal and non-clonal cultivated forms showed distinct trait profiles (P ≤ 0.05). Cultivated landraces emerged rapidly (36–42 days) compared with the wild landrace (121 days), accumulated biomass faster (8.42 vs. 3.54 cm week⁻1), produced more shoots (≈300 vs. 32 corm⁻1), and developed larger canopies (≈3000 cm2 leaf area). The highest photosynthetic rate (10.9 µmol CO₂ m⁻2s⁻1), stomatal conductance (13.9 mmol H₂O m⁻2s⁻1), and chlorophyll content (15.7 mg g⁻1 FW) were observed in a cultivated landrace, whereas the wild landrace prioritized hydraulic stability and water-use efficiency (53.9 µmol CO₂ mmol⁻1 H₂O). Structural and physiological traits were tightly coordinated. Reaction norms across developmental stages suggest genotype-specific adaptive syndromes: cultivated landraces emphasize rapid carbon assimilation, shoot proliferation, and canopy expansion. In contrast, the wild landrace emphasizes slow emergence, limited shoot formation, and water conservation. These findings provide insight into how domestication and clonality shape early regeneration dynamics and physiological strategies in enset, likely setting developmental trajectories that influence later growth and performance. While this study focused on early-stage morpho-physiological traits under uniform conditions, future research should examine the full developmental cycle, seasonal variation, hormonal regulation, and epigenetic mechanisms to clarify how environmental cues, management practices, and intrinsic plasticity jointly influence productivity, adaptation, and resilience. Such integrative knowledge has direct implications for optimizing transplant readiness, propagation efficiency, and sustainable management of enset-based farming systems.

Early shoot regeneration, growth dynamics, and physiological divergence among clonal, non-clonal, and wild forms of enset (Ensete ventricosum (Welw.) Cheesman)

期刊论文
发表日期：

2026年2月25日

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Ashenafi Haile,
Hewan Demissie Degu,
Amsalu Gobena Roro,
Bizuayehu Tesfaye

摘要

Ensete ventricosum (Welw.) Cheesman is mainly propagated vegetatively through corm division, yet the mechanisms underlying developmental divergence among landraces during early regeneration, and how these early differences extend across the full developmental cycle, remain poorly understood. Although previous research explored socio-ecological drivers of enset resilience in Sidama, how landraces differ during early regeneration remains unclear. To address this gap, this study evaluated early-stage morpho-physiological plasticity in five contrasting landraces (cultivated non-clonal, cultivated naturally clonal, and wild) under uniform field conditions across BBCH stages 12–19, starting from the corm prior to sucker transplanting. Significant effects of landrace, developmental stage, and their interaction (P ≤ 0.05) revealed noticeable genotypic differentiation and stage-dependent plasticity. Planned contrasts confirmed that cultivated landraces differed significantly from the wild landrace, and that clonal and non-clonal cultivated forms showed distinct trait profiles (P ≤ 0.05). Cultivated landraces emerged rapidly (36–42 days) compared with the wild landrace (121 days), accumulated biomass faster (8.42 vs. 3.54 cm week⁻¹), produced more shoots (≈300 vs. 32 corm⁻¹), and developed larger canopies (≈3000 cm² leaf area). The highest photosynthetic rate (10.9 µmol CO_₂ m⁻²s⁻¹), stomatal conductance (13.9 mmol H_₂O m⁻²s⁻¹), and chlorophyll content (15.7 mg g⁻¹ FW) were observed in a cultivated landrace, whereas the wild landrace prioritized hydraulic stability and water-use efficiency (53.9 µmol CO_₂ mmol⁻¹ H_₂O). Structural and physiological traits were tightly coordinated. Reaction norms across developmental stages suggest genotype-specific adaptive syndromes: cultivated landraces emphasize rapid carbon assimilation, shoot proliferation, and canopy expansion. In contrast, the wild landrace emphasizes slow emergence, limited shoot formation, and water conservation. These findings provide insight into how domestication and clonality shape early regeneration dynamics and physiological strategies in enset, likely setting developmental trajectories that influence later growth and performance. While this study focused on early-stage morpho-physiological traits under uniform conditions, future research should examine the full developmental cycle, seasonal variation, hormonal regulation, and epigenetic mechanisms to clarify how environmental cues, management practices, and intrinsic plasticity jointly influence productivity, adaptation, and resilience. Such integrative knowledge has direct implications for optimizing transplant readiness, propagation efficiency, and sustainable management of enset-based farming systems.