Home garden with Canna sp., cassava, banana, yam and cucurbits. Coconuts, sugar palms, mangoes and other fruit trees in the background. (Stefan Graf (Switzerland))

Home gardens for consumption and cash crop production (Cambodia)

ច្បារដំណាំ (Khmer)

Description

Home gardens, containing tree, shrub, herbs, vine, tuber layers as well as poultry, produce food for household consumption as well as an additional income.

Home gardens are a traditional setting in Cambodia, where they appear around nearly each house. All the seven layers of production occur, with a tree canopy, lower trees, shrubs, herbs, a soil cover, roots and tubers as well as a climbing layer, but not all layers can be found in each garden. The overlapping production allows a high productivity on a small area, and the trees/canopy provide a comfortable microclimate for both humans and livestock. The products of the home gardens are consumed by the family, surplus is given to neighbours or sold, and provide an additional income. One or more of the crops are produced in bigger amounts to serve as a cash crop. It can be coconuts close to the city, mangoes that are processed, sugarcane or vegetables like winged beans for the market, bamboo for handicrafts or constructions. Poultry is free ranging in the home gardens, thus when short annual plants like water spinach are planted they are protected with bamboo or net fences. The poultry, mostly chicken, but as well ducks, Muscovy ducks, and others, forages in the waste and eats bugs and worms.

The home gardens are planted to produce food, to provide additional income source and assure a comfortable microclimate. Medicinal plants, as well as plants for handicrafts like bamboo, are grown in the home gardens. Due to a lack of labour availability on the farms, the gardens are only poorly maintained. Some NGOs try to implement the production of more annual crops in the home gardens, but fail due to this constraint and the fact that leafy vegetables are collected from the wild during the wet season.

When a new house is built, canopy trees like coconuts or sugar palms are planted, sometimes following a square pattern, with other trees in between. In other gardens, no pattern can be found, as trees are planted more randomly, or left growing on their own. The seedlings growing in and around trash piles are transplanted to more suitable places, sometimes seedlings from grafted varieties are bought from the market.
Mainly annual crops, like yam, are fertilized with cow manure or compost before the sowing. Due to a lack of irrigation water, most farmers only grow annuals during the wet season. During the dry season, the vegetables are bought from other provinces or countries.

The analysed area is flat (slope < 2%), tropic (dry and wet season), and the soils are mostly sandy or loamy. The soils on the fields contain little organic matter (low soil fertility, acidification, small amount of cattle, area has been deforested a long time ago) and the groundwater table is rather high (2 m below soil level during the dry season, on the surface during the wet season).
Due to climate change, the rainfalls are more erratic, temperatures rise and droughts are more recurrent. Rice is the predominant crop grown in the area, since it serves as staple food (mix subsistence and commercial activities). Rice is often grown in monocultures and harvested once a year. Once the rice is harvested (dry season), some farmer release cattle to the paddy fields to eat the straw and weeds.

As an addition to rice, most land users grow vegetable and fruits in home gardens (subsistence) and complement their income by producing handicrafts or through off-farm income / remittances from family members working in other places. Gathering of wild food (plants, animals, and mushrooms) is also of importance for the diet. The increasing migration rate (the young generation leaves the villages to work in the cities, garment industry or abroad) results in a decrease of available labour force in the area that has detrimental effects on the agricultural activities. Furthermore, the civil war in the 1970s (Khmer Rouge) led to the loss of agricultural knowledge that different NGOs try to re-establish.

Location

Location: Kampong Chhnang, Cambodia

No. of Technology sites analysed:

Geo-reference of selected sites
  • n.a.

Spread of the Technology: evenly spread over an area (approx. 10-100 km2)

In a permanently protected area?:

Date of implementation: more than 50 years ago (traditional)

Type of introduction
Home garden with bamboo, coconuts, mangoes and other fruit trees. The concrete pots are used for water storage, the fence to keep off the cattle. (Stefan Graf (Switzerland))

Classification of the Technology

Main purpose
  • improve production
  • reduce, prevent, restore land degradation
  • conserve ecosystem
  • protect a watershed/ downstream areas – in combination with other Technologies
  • preserve/ improve biodiversity
  • reduce risk of disasters
  • adapt to climate change/ extremes and its impacts
  • mitigate climate change and its impacts
  • create beneficial economic impact
  • create beneficial social impact
Land use
Land use mixed within the same land unit: Ja - Agroforestry

  • Cropland
    • Annual cropping: cereals - rice (upland), root/tuber crops - sweet potatoes, yams, taro/cocoyam, other, root/tuber crops - cassava, vegetables - melon, pumpkin, squash or gourd
    • Perennial (non-woody) cropping: banana/plantain/abaca
    • Tree and shrub cropping: citrus, coconut (fruit, coir, leaves, etc.), fruits, other, mango, mangosteen, guava, papaya
  • Forest/ woodlandsTree types: Bamboo bamboo

Water supply
  • rainfed
  • mixed rainfed-irrigated
  • full irrigation

Purpose related to land degradation
  • prevent land degradation
  • reduce land degradation
  • restore/ rehabilitate severely degraded land
  • adapt to land degradation
  • not applicable
Degradation addressed
  • soil erosion by wind - Et: loss of topsoil
  • chemical soil deterioration - Cn: fertility decline and reduced organic matter content (not caused by erosion), Ca: acidification
  • water degradation - Ha: aridification, Hg: change in groundwater/aquifer level
SLM group
  • agroforestry
  • beekeeping, aquaculture, poultry, rabbit farming, silkworm farming, etc.
  • home gardens
SLM measures
  • vegetative measures - V1: Tree and shrub cover, V2: Grasses and perennial herbaceous plants

Technical drawing

Technical specifications
Example of a homegarden with different layers. Coconut palms present the top layer, different vines grow on trellises, bananas and a dwarf papaya form an intermediate layer, pumpkins form the soil cover and Canna represents the edible roots. Many edible wild plants would grow by themselves between the planted ones, and would also be consumed.

Kampong Chhnang
Date: 2014

Technical knowledge required for field staff / advisors: moderate
Technical knowledge required for land users: moderate (Each garden is different.)
Main technical functions: improvement of ground cover, increase in organic matter, increase in nutrient availability (supply, recycling,…), increase of biomass (quantity), promotion of vegetation species and varieties (quality, eg palatable fodder), spatial arrangement and diversification of land use
Secondary technical functions: water harvesting / increase water supply, improvement of water quality, buffering / filtering water, sediment retention / trapping, sediment harvesting, reduction in wind speed

Scattered / dispersed
Vegetative material: T : trees / shrubs, F : fruit trees / shrubs, C : perennial crops
Number of plants per (ha): n/a

Fruit trees / shrubs species: Sugar palm, coconut, mango, custard apple, bananas, limes.
Perennial crops species: Lemon grass, bamboo.
Other species: Eggplants, winged beans, yard long beans, pumpkins, cucumbers.
Author: Stefan Graf, Switzerland

Establishment and maintenance: activities, inputs and costs

Calculation of inputs and costs
  • Costs are calculated:
  • Currency used for cost calculation: n.a.
  • Exchange rate (to USD): 1 USD = n.a
  • Average wage cost of hired labour per day: 5.00
Most important factors affecting the costs
The labour is the most expensive in the home gardens. This is problematic as the labour availability is decreasing due to high migration rates.
Establishment activities
  1. Planting of the selected trees and other plants. (Timing/ frequency: Whole year)
Establishment inputs and costs
Specify input Unit Quantity Costs per Unit (n.a.) Total costs per input (n.a.) % of costs borne by land users
Labour
Labour 1.0 10.0 10.0 100.0
Equipment
Tools 1.0 20.0 20.0 100.0
Plant material
seeds 1.0 5.0 5.0 100.0
seedlings 1.0 45.0 45.0 100.0
Total costs for establishment of the Technology 80.0
Total costs for establishment of the Technology in USD 80.0
Maintenance activities
  1. Harvesting (Timing/ frequency: Depends on the size of the garden and the crops.)
  2. Planting and fertilizing (Timing/ frequency: Depends on the farmers' preference for a given crop)
Maintenance inputs and costs
Specify input Unit Quantity Costs per Unit (n.a.) Total costs per input (n.a.) % of costs borne by land users
Labour
labour 1.0 60.0 60.0 100.0
Plant material
seeds 1.0 3.0 3.0 100.0
Total costs for maintenance of the Technology 63.0
Total costs for maintenance of the Technology in USD 63.0

Natural environment

Average annual rainfall
  • < 250 mm
  • 251-500 mm
  • 501-750 mm
  • 751-1,000 mm
  • 1,001-1,500 mm
  • 1,501-2,000 mm
  • 2,001-3,000 mm
  • 3,001-4,000 mm
  • > 4,000 mm
Agro-climatic zone
  • humid
  • sub-humid
  • semi-arid
  • arid
Specifications on climate
1486.45 mm 2013 in Kampong Chhnang
Thermal climate class: tropics. 27-35°C
Slope
  • flat (0-2%)
  • gentle (3-5%)
  • moderate (6-10%)
  • rolling (11-15%)
  • hilly (16-30%)
  • steep (31-60%)
  • very steep (>60%)
Landforms
  • plateau/plains
  • ridges
  • mountain slopes
  • hill slopes
  • footslopes
  • valley floors
Altitude
  • 0-100 m a.s.l.
  • 101-500 m a.s.l.
  • 501-1,000 m a.s.l.
  • 1,001-1,500 m a.s.l.
  • 1,501-2,000 m a.s.l.
  • 2,001-2,500 m a.s.l.
  • 2,501-3,000 m a.s.l.
  • 3,001-4,000 m a.s.l.
  • > 4,000 m a.s.l.
Technology is applied in
  • convex situations
  • concave situations
  • not relevant
Soil depth
  • very shallow (0-20 cm)
  • shallow (21-50 cm)
  • moderately deep (51-80 cm)
  • deep (81-120 cm)
  • very deep (> 120 cm)
Soil texture (topsoil)
  • coarse/ light (sandy)
  • medium (loamy, silty)
  • fine/ heavy (clay)
Soil texture (> 20 cm below surface)
  • coarse/ light (sandy)
  • medium (loamy, silty)
  • fine/ heavy (clay)
Topsoil organic matter content
  • high (>3%)
  • medium (1-3%)
  • low (<1%)
Groundwater table
  • on surface
  • < 5 m
  • 5-50 m
  • > 50 m
Availability of surface water
  • excess
  • good
  • medium
  • poor/ none
Water quality (untreated)
  • good drinking water
  • poor drinking water (treatment required)
  • for agricultural use only (irrigation)
  • unusable
Water quality refers to:
Is salinity a problem?
  • Ja
  • Nee

Occurrence of flooding
  • Ja
  • Nee
Species diversity
  • high
  • medium
  • low
Habitat diversity
  • high
  • medium
  • low

Characteristics of land users applying the Technology

Market orientation
  • subsistence (self-supply)
  • mixed (subsistence/ commercial)
  • commercial/ market
Off-farm income
  • less than 10% of all income
  • 10-50% of all income
  • > 50% of all income
Relative level of wealth
  • very poor
  • poor
  • average
  • rich
  • very rich
Level of mechanization
  • manual work
  • animal traction
  • mechanized/ motorized
Sedentary or nomadic
  • Sedentary
  • Semi-nomadic
  • Nomadic
Individuals or groups
  • individual/ household
  • groups/ community
  • cooperative
  • employee (company, government)
Gender
  • women
  • men
Age
  • children
  • youth
  • middle-aged
  • elderly
Area used per household
  • < 0.5 ha
  • 0.5-1 ha
  • 1-2 ha
  • 2-5 ha
  • 5-15 ha
  • 15-50 ha
  • 50-100 ha
  • 100-500 ha
  • 500-1,000 ha
  • 1,000-10,000 ha
  • > 10,000 ha
Scale
  • small-scale
  • medium-scale
  • large-scale
Land ownership
  • state
  • company
  • communal/ village
  • group
  • individual, not titled
  • individual, titled
Land use rights
  • open access (unorganized)
  • communal (organized)
  • leased
  • individual
Water use rights
  • open access (unorganized)
  • communal (organized)
  • leased
  • individual
Access to services and infrastructure
health

poor
good
education

poor
good
technical assistance

poor
good
employment (e.g. off-farm)

poor
good
markets

poor
good
energy

poor
good
roads and transport

poor
good
drinking water and sanitation

poor
good
financial services

poor
good

Impacts

Socio-economic impacts
Crop production
decreased
increased

fodder production
decreased
increased

wood production
decreased
increased

risk of production failure
increased
decreased

product diversity
decreased
increased

drinking water availability
decreased
increased


Bioremediation of groundwater.

demand for irrigation water
increased
decreased


if more perennials (trees) are planted.

diversity of income sources
decreased
increased


Otherwise only rice is grown. Bamboo is used for handicraft.

workload
increased
decreased


Depending on crops. Most home garden crops have an excellent cost/benefit ratio.

Socio-cultural impacts
food security/ self-sufficiency
reduced
improved

health situation
worsened
improved


Together with food collected from the wild, improves the mainly rice based dishes.

contribution to human well-being
decreased
increased


Increased income, income diversification, food security, food diversification

Ecological impacts
water quality
decreased
increased


Bioremediaiton of groundwater.

soil cover
reduced
improved


Permanent soil cover

nutrient cycling/ recharge
decreased
increased


Nutrients from groundwater are returned to the cycle.

soil organic matter/ below ground C
decreased
increased


If the leaves are not burnt.

biomass/ above ground C
decreased
increased

plant diversity
decreased
increased

animal diversity
decreased
increased

wind velocity
increased
decreased

Off-site impacts
groundwater/ river pollution
increased
reduced


Bioremediation of groundwater.

buffering/ filtering capacity (by soil, vegetation, wetlands)
reduced
improved


Bioremediation of groundwater.

wind transported sediments
increased
reduced

Cost-benefit analysis

Benefits compared with establishment costs
Short-term returns
very negative
very positive

Long-term returns
very negative
very positive

Benefits compared with maintenance costs
Short-term returns
very negative
very positive

Long-term returns
very negative
very positive

Climate change

Gradual climate change
annual temperature increase

not well at all
very well
Climate-related extremes (disasters)
local rainstorm

not well at all
very well
local windstorm

not well at all
very well
Answer: not known
drought

not well at all
very well
general (river) flood

not well at all
very well
Answer: not known
Other climate-related consequences
reduced growing period

not well at all
very well

Adoption and adaptation

Percentage of land users in the area who have adopted the Technology
  • single cases/ experimental
  • 1-10%
  • 11-50%
  • > 50%
Of all those who have adopted the Technology, how many have done so without receiving material incentives?
  • 0-10%
  • 11-50%
  • 51-90%
  • 91-100%
Has the Technology been modified recently to adapt to changing conditions?
  • Ja
  • Nee
To which changing conditions?
  • climatic change/ extremes
  • changing markets
  • labour availability (e.g. due to migration)

Conclusions and lessons learnt

Strengths: land user's view
  • To produce fruits and vegetables for home consumption
  • Many types of fruits and vegetables can be produced on a small area of land, for home consumption and to sell the surplus
  • The home gardens are close to the houses, all the members of the family can help, and it is possible to look at the house at the same time
Strengths: compiler’s or other key resource person’s view
  • Increased food security and health
  • Diversification of income sources
  • Improvement of the soil fertility where farmers use compost
Weaknesses/ disadvantages/ risks: land user's viewhow to overcome
  • Lack of water for irrigation Build household ponds
  • Insects are attracted to the crops, and spread when crops are grown together Use integrated pest management
  • Prices sometimes drop for seasonal crops, like mangoes, and farmers cannot sell the crop Process the fruits (e.g. drying) so they can be preserved
Weaknesses/ disadvantages/ risks: compiler’s or other key resource person’s viewhow to overcome
  • Lack of good varieties and selection, lack of knowledge about grafting fruit trees Organize seed exchange, organize grafting and seed saving trainings
  • Lack of knowledge about fertilization, not all farmers know about the benefits of compost or manure. Leaves are often burned in the home gardens Provide composting and mulching training

References

Compiler
  • Stefan Graf
Editors
Reviewer
  • Deborah Niggli
  • Alexandra Gavilano
Date of documentation: Okt. 17, 2014
Last update: Maart 4, 2019
Resource persons
Full description in the WOCAT database
Linked SLM data
Documentation was faciliated by
Institution Project
Key references
  • Kumar & Nair (Ed.). 2006. Tropical Homegardens. A time tested example of sustainable agroforestry. Dordrecht: Springer: http://library.uniteddiversity.coop/Permaculture/Agroforestry/Tropical_Homegardens-A_Time_Tested_Example_of_Sustainable_Agroforestry.pdf
This work is licensed under Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareaAlike 4.0 International