Socio-ecological determinants of species composition of crops in homegardens of southern Ethiopia

We explored the socio-ecological factors mediating the composition of crop species composition in homegardens of southwest Ethiopia. For this, eleven kebeles were purposively selected based on the altitudinal variations that range between 1980 and 3271 ma.s.l. From each kebele 11 households were randomly selected and in total 121 households were used for the study. Here, a complete plant inventory was undertaken in homegardens along with the socio-economic survey using semi-structured questionnaire. The effects of altitude, non-crop woody cover, distance to market and type of crop raiders on crop species composition was tested using Adonis function. The effects of altitude, non-crop woody species richness and homegardens distance to forest edge on plant species richness were tested using Linear Mixed Effect Model within lmer function using R statistical program. The effect of wealth status on plant species richness was tested using One-way ANOVA. Altogether, 45 plant species belonging to 38 genera and 25 families were recorded. The crop species composition in homegardens was significantly affected by non-crop woody cover (P = 0.02), altitude (P = 0.001), distance to market (P = 0.01) and types of crop raiders (P = 0.03).Similarly, plant species richness decreased with increasing altitudinal gradient, increased with increasing distance from forest edges and non-crop woody species richness (P < 0.02) and vary among the different wealth categories of the households (P = 0.002). Overall, this study highlights that the conservation schemes need to take into account the socio-ecological factors determining the crop species composition in agroecosystems of southern Ethiopia.

Automated summary

The composition of crop species in homegardens in southwest Ethiopia is significantly influenced by factors such as non-crop woody cover, altitude, distance to market, and type of crop raiders. Additionally, plant species richness decreases with increasing altitude gradient, increases with distance from forest edges and non-crop woody species richness, and varies among different wealth categories of households. Conservation strategies in southern Ethiopia need to consider these socio-ecological factors when determining crop species composition in agroecosystems.