Integrating farmer preferences and ecological assessment to evaluate grazing management in semi-arid Ethiopian rangelands

This study examined grazing management on forage yield, species diversity, nutritive composition, defoliation intensity, and farmers’ preferences in the Dagabir watershed, Hawzen district, northern Ethiopia. A comparative field experiment used three grazing management systems (caged, locally protected, and freely grazed) with 30 plots (10 per treatment), complemented by surveys of 100 households, 15 key informants, and 30 farmers. Data were analyzed using one-way ANOVA with Tukey’s HSD test, while farmers’ preference data were analyzed using the Kruskal–Wallis test with Dunn–Bonferroni post hoc comparisons. Results showed forage biomass was highest in Caged plots (4.06 ± 0.95 t ha − 1 ), followed by locally protected (2.11 ± 0.29 t ha − 1 ) and freely grazed plots (0.32 ± 0.07 t ha − 1 ) ( P < 0.001). Species diversity was highest in locally protected plots (1.16 ± 0.05), followed by caged (1.11 ± 0.18), indicating that moderate grazing disturbance promoted plant diversity. Participatory evaluation identified priority fodder species, including Olea europaea , Sesbania sesban , Pennisetum purpureum , and Cynodon dactylon , receiving highest farmer preference due to multipurpose use and productivity. Crude protein (7.52–22.43%), In Vitro Dry Matter Digestibility (62.38–75.88%), and mineral compositions varied among species and grazing systems. Caged plots showed higher crude protein (18.97%) and digestibility (71.18%) but lower fiber fractions, whereas freely grazed plots exhibited the highest defoliation intensity (up to 79.5%). Grazing exclusion improves forage biomass and quality, while controlled grazing enhances species diversity. Integrating adaptive grazing management with productive woody and herbaceous fodder species can improve livestock feed availability and strengthen rangeland resilience in semi-arid environments.