2. Introduction
The word "homegarden" has been used rather loosely to
describe diverse practices, from growing vegetables
behind houses to complex multistoried systems.
“Tropical homegardens” consist of an assemblage of
plants, which may include trees, shrubs, vines, and
herbaceous plants, growing in or adjacent to a homestead
or home compound.
Home gardens are traditional farming systems,
presumably the oldest land use system (Pushpakumara et
al., 2012) and allow its owner to produce a wide variety of
variety of products and ecosystem services (Cilliers et al.,
2012).
3. Principles of Homegardens
1. Subsistence farming
2. Provide mulch
3. Soil and Water conservation
4. Self-sustaining
5. Promote Biodiversity
6. Highly productive
7. No or less labour requirement
4. Terms used for Homegardens
• Mixed-garden horticulture (Terra, 1954)
• Mixed garden or house garden (Stoler, 1975)
• Home-garden (Ramsay and Wiersum, 1974)
• Javanese homegarden (Soemarwoto et al, 1976; Soemarwoto,
1987)
• Compound farm(Lagemann, 1977)
• Kitchen garden (Brierley, 1985)
• Household garden (Vasey, 1985), and
• Homestead agroforestry (Nair and sreedharan, 1986; Leuschner
and Khalique, 1987).
Pekarangan
&
Talunkebun
9. (Source: Kumar and Tripathi, 2017)
A schematic presentation of the major mechanisms and processes involved in production and
service attributes of sustainable Home gardens
10. Provisioning services of homegardens
• Provisioning Services are ecosystem services
that describe the material or energy outputs
from ecosystems.
• It includes food, water and other resources.
11. Provisioning services of home gardens in different countries
Country (region) No. HGs surveyed Total no.
spp/garden
Predominant
plant spp.
Source
Austria, (Osttirol) 196 94 Ornamental, followed by
spices, fruits
Vogl-Lukasser and Vogl
2004
Bangladesh (Northern part) 80 62 Edible, medicine, fuel and
timber
Roy et al., 2013
China (Beijing
municipality)
104 278 Edible, ornamental,
medicine
Clarke et al., 2014
Ecuador (Amazonian) 138 484 Edible, medicine,
Ornamental
Caballero et al., 2016
Ethiopia (Janithenan
District)
48 69 Edible, medicine,
ornamental
Mekonnen et al., 2014
Iran (Bash district) 192 97 Edible, ornamental,
medicine
Schadegan et al., 2013
India (North Bengal) 100 142 Edible, fuel and timber,
ornamental
Subba et al., 2016
Sri Lanka (Western parts) 106 289 Ornamental, food,
medicine
Kumari et al., 2009
Mexico (Tehuacan-
Cuicatlan Valley)
30 233 Ornamental, edible, shade Blanckaert et al., 2004
Cuba (Eastern parts) 31 101 Edible, medicine,
ornamental
Alexander (2003)
12. Regulatory services
• Regulating ecosystem services are the benefits obtained
from the regulation of ecosystem processes.
• It includes carbon sequestration, soil fertility
enhancement, prevention of soil erosion, water regulation,
wind regulation, pest regulation, and pollination.
13. Carbon sequestration potential of homegarden
• Human activities are currently responsible for the emission of an
estimated 7.9 billion tons of carbon to the atmosphere annually (IPCC
2001).
• Agroforestry has importance as a carbon sequestration strategy
because of carbon storage potential in its multiple plant species and
soil as well its applicability in agriculture lands and reforestation
(Montahnini and Nair 2004).
• The homegardens perhaps are unique in that all three mechanisms are
relevant; i.e., they sequester C in biomass and soil, reduce fossil-fuel
burning by promoting wood fuel production, help in the conservation
of C stocks in existing forests by alleviating the pressure on natural
forests and ensure greater synergy with the Convention on Biological
Diversity (CBD).
14. Summary of the relative attributes of a land use continuum in the tropics.
Attributes Annual
crops
Agroforestry Homegardens and
complex multi-strata
systems
Mature Forest
C stock (1)
Aboveground
Soil
Fossil fuel/subsidies (C costs) (2)
Low
Low
High
Low-high
Low-high
Low
Medium-High
Medium-high
Low
Very-high
Very-high
Zero
Ecosystem services (3) Low Low-high High Very high
Diversity (3) Low Low High Very high
Herbivores pressure (4) High High Low Very low
Loss rate of soil C (decomposition)
(5)
High very Medium Low-medium Low
Nutrient output (leaching/other)( 6) High Medium Low Very low
Soil biota (7) Low Low High Very high
(Source: Kumar, 2006)
15. A comparison of the ecological attributes of climax forests,
homegardens and conventional agricultural systems
(monocropping)
(Kumar and Nair, 2004)
16. Conclusion
• Humans are fully dependent upon functional ecosystems that provide a
number of services, such as food, shelter, energy, climate regulation and
aesthetic appeal.
• In order to prevent further degradation, it is important to identify these
services and the role that they have for human wellbeing and economic
activities.
• Ecosystem services and their values have become more integrated into
policy during recent years, and politicians initiate investigations that seek to
assess and include the value of ecosystem services in planning.
• Homegardens provide almost all four ecosystem services as highlighted by
MEA (2005) and supporting ecosystem services studies in lacking regarding
the homegardens.
• Thus, further scientific studies are needed to understand and to reveal the
functions of micro region (HG) ES.
