Silas Semenya Sebua, Maroyi Alfred
Technology Transfer Office, Research Administration and Development Department, University of Limpopo, Private Bag X1106, Sovenga 0727, Limpopo, South Africa.
Department of Biodiversity, University of Limpopo, Private Bag X1106, Sovenga 0727, Limpopo, South Africa.
Scientifica (Cairo). 2020 Apr 20;2020:3561306. doi: 10.1155/2020/3561306. eCollection 2020.
Several communities in developing countries derive substantial part of their livelihood needs from alien plants cultivated and managed in home gardens. The aim of this study was to assess useful alien plant species cultivated and managed in home gardens of Limpopo province in South Africa. Semistructured interviews, personal observation, and guided walks with 300 participants between January 2015 and December 2016 were employed to obtain data on names of alien plants cultivated in home gardens and their use categories. A total of 101 plant species belonging to 44 families were recorded from the study area. More than half of the species (66.3%) belonged to 14 families, Fabaceae, Asteraceae, Rosaceae, Solanaceae, Lamiaceae, Anacardiaceae, Poaceae, Amaranthaceae, Apocynaceae, Brassicaceae, Cactaceae, Euphorbiaceae, Moraceae, and Myrtaceae. Twenty-six use categories of alien plants were identified in this study with the majority of species (75.2%) used for medicinal purposes, followed by ornamental (33.7%), edible fruits (24.8%), spices (16.8%), vegetables (16.8%), shade (11.9%), beverages (10.9%), construction materials (8.9%), firewood (7.9%), and hedge (7.9%). These findings corroborate the existing body of knowledge emphasizing the importance of plants grown and managed in home gardens to the livelihood needs of local communities.
发展中国家的几个社区的生计需求很大一部分来自于家庭菜园中种植和管理的外来植物。本研究的目的是评估南非林波波省家庭菜园中种植和管理的有用外来植物物种。在2015年1月至2016年12月期间，通过与300名参与者进行半结构化访谈、个人观察和引导式走访，获取了家庭菜园中种植的外来植物名称及其用途类别的数据。研究区域共记录了101种植物，分属44个科。超过一半的物种（66.3%）属于14个科，即豆科、菊科、蔷薇科、茄科、唇形科、漆树科、禾本科、苋科、夹竹桃科、十字花科、仙人掌科、大戟科、桑科和桃金娘科。本研究确定了外来植物的26种用途类别，其中大多数物种（75.2%）用于药用，其次是观赏（33.7%）、食用水果（24.8%）、香料（16.8%）、蔬菜（16.8%）、遮荫（11.9%）、饮料（10.9%）、建筑材料（8.9%）、柴火（7.9%）和树篱（7.9%）。这些发现证实了现有知识体系所强调的家庭菜园中种植和管理的植物对当地社区生计需求的重要性。
