Jegora Tefera, Hundera Kitessa, Kebebew Zerihun, Eneyew Adugna
College of Agriculture and Veterinary Medicine, Jimma University, Jimma, Ethiopia.
College of Agriculture and Forestry, Mettu University, Metu, Ethiopia.
PLoS One. 2025 Jan 7;20(1):e0313520. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0313520. eCollection 2025.
Homegarden agroforestry systems that integrate trees with agricultural practices are usually valued for the conservation of farm biodiversity. Despite the system having a significant conservation role, litle is known on woody species composition and diversity following the elevation belt of southwest Ethiopia. A complete enumeration of 72 homegardens (24 each from altitudinal gradient) was purposively selected for woody species inventory. A total of 55 woody species belonging to 31 families and 45 genera were recorded. Of which, 56.4% of woody species are indigenous and two are endemic to Ethiopia. Family Fabaceae was the most represented family with eight species. The highest species richness (42) was observed at high altitudes followed by 39 species at middle and 31 species at low altitudes but no significant difference between them. Species richness significantly (P < 0.001) increased with increasing wealth status. The overall richness distribution was 46, 40, and 27 across rich, medium, and poor wealth classes respectively. Shannon diversity index differed significantly between poor and rich households. Pearson correlation result shows a strong positive and significant correlation between richness and wealth status. The mean woody species density was 89.06±9.25 and 1236.22±131.42 per garden and hectare, respectively. Stem density was significantly higher (P < 0.001) in wealthier farms. We found that, in southwestern Ethiopia wealthier agroforestry farms can support more woody species diversity in homegardens.
将树木与农业实践相结合的庭院农林业系统通常因其对农场生物多样性的保护作用而受到重视。尽管该系统具有重要的保护作用，但对于埃塞俄比亚西南部海拔带沿线的木本植物种类组成和多样性却知之甚少。我们有目的地选择了72个庭院（每个海拔梯度24个）进行木本植物清查。共记录了55种木本植物，分属于31科45属。其中，56.4%的木本植物为本土植物，有两种是埃塞俄比亚特有的。豆科是种类最多的科，有8种。在高海拔地区观察到的物种丰富度最高（42种），其次是中海拔地区的39种和低海拔地区的31种，但它们之间没有显著差异。物种丰富度随着财富状况的增加而显著增加（P < 0.001）。在富裕、中等和贫困财富阶层中，总体丰富度分布分别为46种、40种和27种。香农多样性指数在贫困家庭和富裕家庭之间存在显著差异。皮尔逊相关结果表明，丰富度与财富状况之间存在强烈的正相关且显著相关。每个庭院和每公顷的平均木本植物密度分别为89.06±9.25和1236.22±131.42。较富裕农场的茎密度显著更高（P < 0.001）。我们发现，在埃塞俄比亚西南部，较富裕的农林业农场能够在庭院中支持更多的木本植物物种多样性。
