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Learning from women's
experience
A
Ugandan woman carries a headload of
cereals in her home garden
FAO/19321
/R. Faidutti
Soil conservation planners have begun to recognize
the value of local knowledge - particularly that of
women - and projects are incorporating low-cost
techniques adapted to local conditions. For
example, an agro-forestry project in Yatenga,
Burkina Faso, relies on the harvesting of scant
rainfall to keep fields and crops moist throughout
the growing season. It has successfully combined a
traditional technique of collecting water in small
pits spaced across fields with the construction of
rock banks following the shallow-sloping field
contours - and much of the bank building is done by
women. Crops in these fields can now survive up to
two weeks of drought, producing larger and more
reliable yields.
Women's gardens are models of sustainable land
use. They are typically dominated by perennial
rather than annual vegetation and fertilized with
mulch, manure and crop residues. Home gardens
provide sustained yields, yet cause minimal
environmental degradation under continuous use. A
study in Nigeria found that women who grow
intensive home gardens may cultivate 18 to 57 plant
species, including tubers, legumes, grains and
fruit-trees, in addition to raising dwarf goats and
poultry. As one expert stated: "Women may practise
more multiple cropping, plant more carefully and
have more knowledge of varieties than their
husbands."
Further
information
Subcategories
Learning from women's experience
Women's gardens are models of sustainable land use. They are typically dominated by perennial rather than annual vegetation and fertilized with mulch, manure and crop residues. Home gardens provide sustained yields, yet cause minimal environmental degradation under continuous use. A study in Nigeria found that women who grow intensive home gardens may cultivate 18 to 57 plant species, including tubers, legumes, grains and fruit-trees, in addition to raising dwarf goats and poultry. As one expert stated: "Women may practise more multiple cropping, plant more carefully and have more knowledge of varieties than their husbands."
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