Homegardens in Sri Lanka are dynamic sustainable food production systems, and presumably the oldest land use activity, next to shifting cultivation. It is still one of the major forms of land use in the island that has continued to evolve through generations within the Sri Lankan landscape to suit the socio-economic, cultural and ecological needs. In most cases, transferred from one generation to the next, the gardens are maintained as a family property. This land use system has existed in Sri Lanka for centuries, and in 1995 accounted for 13.1% of the total land area of the country. However, it started receiving the national recognition only recently. This review summarizes the current status of knowledge on homegardens, their importance to the society and environment, and potential for improving them. In this endeavor, about 90 published documentary evidences were reviewed. As revealed the homegarden research in Sri Lanka dates back to 1973 and during the past four decades, the research focus was mainly on providing system description on localized homegarden systems. It was further attempted in this review to highlight the significance of the homegarden land use system and its dominant contribution in maintaining agricultural and environmental sustainability of the country. In this context, the importance of classification of homegardens, present status of homegarden agroforestry in terms of area under homegardens and their distribution, contributions of homegardens to timber and fuelwood production, food and nutritional security of householders, biodiversity conservation, and in managing landscape sustainably through environmental services, are discussed in detail. Further, the critical gaps in available information and way forward in homegarden research are identified
Tahun publikasi
2012
Penulis
Pushpakumara D K N G; Marambe B; Silva G L L P; Weerahewa J; Punyawardena B V R
Bahasa
English
Kata kunci
agroforestry, climate change, biodiversity, conservation
Geografis
Sri Lanka
