Assessment of Homegarden Agroforestry Practices: Case Study of Horticultural Crop Production Trends, and Contribution towards Biodiversity Conservation and Local Livelihoods

Abstract

Homegarden (HG) in southwestern Ethiopia is a well-known practice that plays an important role not only in socioeconomic aspects, but also in biodiversity conservation. However, increased human population in line with the scarcity of land for food production and expansion of cash crops in the area have put pressure on the component diversity of which horticultural crops are the major. The aim of this study was to examine the trends of horticultural crop production based on local's point of view and measures of plant diversity by using multistage sampling from a total of 133 households and 15 key informants using a semi-structured questionnaire with 9 FGD discussions. Descriptive statistics, multiple linear regression, and diversity index measures were used for data analysis and interpretation. Results showed that socioeconomic variables had a significant impact on farmers' perceptions of horticultural crop production trends (explaining 58% of the variance). Most of the respondents agreed that the little progress towards horticultural production was related to market efficiency. The study also revealed a total of 79 plant species, grouped in the order of herbs (42%), trees (28%), shrubs (24%), and vines (6%). The diversity index indicated that the plant species present in HG of the study area had moderately high diversity and species richness. Keywords: Homegarden Agroforestry, production trends, Biosphere Reserve, Biodiversity DOI: 10.7176/JEES/13-3-01 Publication date: April 30 th 2023