Evaluation of the adaptability and response fo potential indigenous trees to water harvesting in the rehabilitation of kuriftu lake catchment.

Accelerated soil erosion and land degradation is peculiar to hilol side lake catchments that are devoid of vegetation cover.When trees and shrubs on hill sides are removed the soil on the site will be exposed and it will easily be eroded by various agents of erosion since it loses its aggregation and stability.Subsequently up slopes will lose their productive potentiality and transported top soils to down up slopes will lose their productive p9tentiality and transported top soils to down slope cause problems of displacement and drying of lakes through time.With the prevalence of such phenomena hill sides will ultimtley dooom to irreversible conditions of site degradation. The study aimed at evaluating the potential of adaptability and performance of five tree species to rehabilitate the degreaded hill side of Kuriftu lake catchment and the role of artificaial water harvesting structures, such as infiltration pits, in the process. The study shows that different tree species have significantly varying potentials to adapt and rehabilitate shch degraded hill sides.In addition water harvesting structures significantly augment seedling establishement of some tree species on hill sides while other species could establish without them. According to this study a significant decline in the height growth of Acacia abyssinica in steeper slope classes was redeemed by infiltration pits.Tree species like Dodonaea angustifolia showed no need for water harvesting structures especially in gentler slope classes. Comparable mean height growth indicateds comparative hardiness. It was also found that planting of tree species like Acacia comparative hardiness. It was also found that planting of tree species like Acacia seyal to rehabilitate shch hill sides should be restricted to gentler slopes and augmented by infiltration pits.Height growth of this species showed a significant decline on steep slopes that could not be redeemed throug the use of pits.Olea africana performaed better on gentle slopes with water harvesting pits.The results indicate that comparable performances of this species couod be attained in steeper slope classes when seedlings are planted with infiltration pits.Euclea schimperi has been found to perform poorest among the species evaluated in thisrehabilition study.