Assessment on Farmers Tree Growing Practices and Tree Species Diversity in the Home Garden, Farmlands, and nearby Forest of Abaychomen District, Oromia Region, Ethiopia

Authors

  • Taye Lemma Geleta College of Natural and Computational Sciences Centre for Environmental Sciences, Ethiopia.

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.47504/IJAGRI.2023.4.1.1

Keywords:

Crop field,, Diversity index, Ethiopia, Home garden, , Important tree species, Natural forest, Sorensen coefficient

Abstract

This study was conducted to investigate the farmers’ tree-growing practices and the diversity of tree species in the home garden, farmlands, and nearby forest areas of Abaychomen District, Eastern Wollega, Oromia region, Ethiopia. Data were collected from sampled Households (HHs) using purposive random sampling methods for the socio-economic survey and a systematic sampling technique for vegetation assessment. For the interview, 152 HHs were selected from the two Peasant Associations of Gutene and Dinoberema. Focus group discussions and site observations were used. The result showed 51 tree species in Dinoberema and 41 in Gutene were identified and recorded. The Shannon diversity index is high in the natural forest of both sites and low in the crop fields of Gutene and the home garden area of Denoberema. Simpson diversity index exhibited a similar trend as the Shannon diversity index in both sites. Croton macrostachyus and Podocarpus falcatus are the 1st and the 2nd most important tree species in both sites. Higher Sorensen coefficient similarity was observed between crop fields and home gardens. The result also revealed HHs within the rich wealth class have a large area of home gardens related to the medium and poor. According to respondents viewed, (80 % observed labor availability) in Gutene, and (60% observed land availability) in Dinoberema were opportunities to grow trees. However, shortage of cash and land were the main constraints for tree-growing practices. Therefore, this study is important for effective tree biodiversity. Hence, identifying and documenting the tree species diversity and practices of local peoples on tree management is necessary to build the gaps in knowledge.

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How to Cite

Taye Lemma Geleta. (2023). Assessment on Farmers Tree Growing Practices and Tree Species Diversity in the Home Garden, Farmlands, and nearby Forest of Abaychomen District, Oromia Region, Ethiopia. International Journal of Agriculture, Biology & Environment (e-ISSN 2582-6107) DOI: 10.47504/IJAGRI, 4(1), 1–13. https://doi.org/10.47504/IJAGRI.2023.4.1.1