Tropical Homegardens - library.uniteddiversity.coop

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Up to a certain level, the cultivation of homegardens can respond well to changes
in socioeconomic conditions by means of intensification of cultivation, shifting the
ratio of perennials to annuals and sometimes domestic animals, and a certain degree
of specialization in crops. But major differences in socioeconomic status are
reflected in homegardens having a clearly different composition. It is possible to
differentiate various types of homegardens in respect to their role in the household
economics (Table 2).
Table 2. Different types of homegardens in relation of household economics.
Homegarden type Characteristics
Survival gardens Gardens form single component farming system of
otherwise landless rural people
Combined production of staple food crops and comple-
mentary crops
Subsistence gardens Part of multi-component farming system in conjuncttion
with permanent or shifting field production
Complementary system to open-field staple food cultivation
systems
Provision of daily supply of vegetables, herbs, spices
and fruits for household needs and occasional sale
Market gardens Specialized farming system or part of multi-component
farming system
Cultivation of cash crops with possible complementary
production of household products
Budget gardens Gardens of households with economic bases in rural or
urban employment; family needs are mostly purchased
from the market
Cultivation of ‘hobby’ products for household consumption
and ornamentals
Source: Adapted from Niñez (1984).
K.F. WIERSUM W
4. HOMEGARDEN DYNAMICS
Many of the factors that impinge on homegarden structure and composition change
with time, and it is therefore logical to infer that the homegarden structure and
composition change whenever socioeconomic factors change (e.g., Peyre et al.,
2006; Abdoellah et al., 2006). Such changes often reflect the general processes of
rural changes and may involve several aspects of rural transformations. Areas that
used to be remote are increasingly being incorporated into the national economy
with traditional land use systems such as shifting cultivation gradually becoming
transferred to more permanent cropping systems. Remote areas may also be actively
opened up for migrants. In Indonesia the transmigration from the densely populated