Abstract:
Home gardens have become a valuable source of food in Sri Lanka, helping to minimise the burden
of feeding families by reducing food bills. A pilot study was conducted to understand the
current diversity and species richness of food crops in traditional home gardens in the KuliyapitiyaWest
divisional secretariat area. The study found species belonging to 92 genera comprising
51 plant families from 20 home gardens, where trees were the dominating life form. Shannon
diversity of food crops varied from 0.9 to 3.05, and species richness varied from 5 to 64.Citrus
was the most dominant genus with a variety of cultivars, followed by Musa spp. and Mangifera
spp. The majority of home gardens primarily consisted of fruit and nuts, vegetables, beverages,
spices and root and tuber crops, indicating that home garden owners prefer to meet daily household
needs from their home gardens. It was evident that cultivating annual vegetable crops in
home gardens was not a common choice among dwellers. Leguminous crops were also uncommon
in the home gardens. Therefore, to ensure nutritional security, there should be further
attention on adding food crops that provide plant-based proteins. Future actions are necessary
to educate house dwellers on processing spices, surplus fruits, vegetables and yams. Future
surveys should include improved methodologies to investigate the climatic and socioeconomic
factors affecting home garden production, diversity and richness.
