Ethnobotanical study of homegarden plants in Sebeta-Awas District of the Oromia Region of Ethiopia to assess use, species diversity and management practices

BACKGROUND: Homegardens in Ethiopia are currently facing different threats mainly due genetic erosion, loss of traditional knowledge on their use and management and drought. On the other hand, research and documentation works on homegardens in the country are very limited. There is no previous report indicating conduct of ethnobotanical study on homegardens in selected study district. The present study thus attempted to document knowledge on uses and management practices of homegardens by people in study district. METHODS: The study was conducted in Sebeta-Awas District, Southwestern Shewa Zone of Oromia Region, Ethiopia, between March and September 2009 to assess use, species diversity and conservation status of homegardens in the District. Data were collected using semi-structured interviews as well as through homegarden visits, market surveys and different ranking exercises. For the semi-structured interviews, 42 homegarden owners were selected randomly from seven sampled kebeles (smallest administrative units in Ethiopia), six from each kebele. For different ranking exercises, 14 informants (10 males and 4 females) were sampled using convenient sampling method from among homegarden owners that already participated in semi-structured interviews. RESULTS: In total, 113 plant species belonging to 46 families were recorded from the study area, of which 45 (39.8 %) were herbs, 34 (30.1 %) were trees, 26 (23.0 %) were shrubs and 8 (7.1 %) were climbers. Fabaceae had the highest number of species, followed by the families Asteraceae, Lamiaceae and Solanaceae. The cash crops Catha edulis, Rhamnus prinoides and Ruta chalepensis were the most frequently encountered homegarden plants. Cupressus lusitanica, Eucalyptus camaldulensis and Faidherbia albida were the most abundant tree species that had the highest densities of occurrence. Of the recorded plant species, 25 % were used as sources of food, 13 % as medicine and 10 % as household tools. CONCLUSION: It can be concluded that homegardens in the study area are rich in crops and, therefore, significantly contribute to the agrobiodiversity of the study District, in particular, and Ethiopia, in general.