Abstract
Twenty-eight Hemarthria altissima introductions were evaluated according to their dry matter (DM) yield, plant height and tillering. On the basis of the highest DM yields at a harvest interval of 60 days during the short- and long-day season, total annual yield in 1988-90 and the weed infestation rates, the best five introductions were selected for the present discussion. Of these five selections, introductions PRPI 13188 and 13207 gave consistently higher DM yields during the short-day season and the whole experimental period. During the long-day season of 1988 and 1989 the DM yields of the five introductions were very similar, without significant differences among the five accessions. Introduction PRPI 13188 showed significantly higher DM yields during the short day season of 1989-90 than introductions PRPI 13208, 13206 and 13202. On the other hand, introduction PRPI 13207 showed the lowest weed infestation rates during both years. In terms of the development during the establishing period, introductions PRPI 13188 and 13207 showed an average soil cover relative to that of the other introductions. At 16 weeks, introductions PRPI 13188 and 13207 were the tallest. In addition to the excellent DM yields of introductions PRPI 13188 and 13207, both introductions showed good adaptations in terms of their development during the establishment period.