Home garden and backyard interventions
at the Kabe Watershed Pilot Project in
Ethiopia, 2011-2013
Seid Hussen (Wollo University)
Workshop on the lessons and success stories from a
pilot project on climate change adaptation
interventions in Kabe watershed, south Wollo,
Ethiopia, Addis Ababa, 11-12 February 2013

1. Introduction
 Kabe is much degraded and highly populated
 Farm land is very much fragmented
 Cereal based crop production is dominant
 Food security is an issue in the area
 Home garden development with vegetable crops and highland
fruits is at its infant stage
 The objectives of the home-garden intervention is to introduce
vegetable crops and high value fruit trees so as to enhance
intensification and increase agricultural productivity.

2. Approaches/methods
 44 male and 6 female
HHs involved in the
home-garden
activities.
 Potato (2 Varities),
Shallot and Garlic,
Swiss chard and Head
cabbage, Carrot and
Apple (6 varities)
introduced in the
watershed.

Community involvement

3. Results/Impact
Table 1. Average yield /ha
Crops Beneficiaries
Av. yield Conservative Likely Target
Male Female obtained yield (t ha-1) yield yield
(t ha-1) (t ha-1) (t ha-1)
Cabbage 46 4 30 50 80-
24.69 90
Shallot 46 4 16.63 20 30 40
Garlic 46 4 10.15 6 10 15
Carrot 46 4 35.25 20 30 40
Potato 46 4 22.64 17 28 45
Swiss chard 46 4 15.05 20 30 40
Apple 46 4 Vegetative
stage
Plum 18 0 Vegetative
stage

Table 2. Crop varieties and benefits
Crops Varities Benefits
Cabbage Copenhagen Cash crop /income and Home consumption
Shallot Local Cash crop/income and home consumption
Garlic Local Cash crop/income and seed source
Carrot Nantes Cash crop/income , home consumption
Potato Jalene , Kudene Cash crop/income, home consumption and
seed source.
Swiss chard Long white ribbed Mostly for home consumption but some HH
sold and used as cash crop
Apple Jonagold, Anna Crispin, Vegetative stage , and is well established with
BR,Cp_92 and princisa almost 100% survival rate
Plume Vegetative stage and Well established

4. Challenges
Challenges

5. Lessons/ recommendations
• Diversification of production
• Increase productivity
• Better adaptation of apple varities
• Problem of white root rot of garlic
• Late blight problem at high altitude
• Yield increment even in poor production
• Community involvement was attractive and impact of
climate change can be overcome through diversification
• Continuous and up-to-date training is necessary to
extension workers and farmers