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Homestead Plant Species Diversity and Its Contribution to the Household Economy: a Case Study from Northern Part of Bangladesh

Mohammad Golam Kibria
Department of Forestry and Environmental Science, School of Agriculture and Mineral Sciences, Shahjalal University of Science and Technology, Sylhet-3114, Bangladesh

Sawon Istiak Anik
Department of Forestry and Environmental Science, School of Agriculture and Mineral Sciences, Shahjalal University of Science and Technology, Sylhet-3114, Bangladesh

Abstract/ Executive Summary:

This paper analyzes data on the plant species diversity and their contribution to the livelihoods of rural people in five villages of Domar upazila, Nilphamari district, Bangladesh. Assessment was done by means of multistage random sampling. Information collected from a total of 40 households ranging from small, medium and large categories. A total of 52 plant species belonging to 34 families were identified as being important to local livelihoods. Fruits (37%), timber (23%) and medicinal (17%) species were the most important plant use categories. Determination of the relative density of the different species revealed that Areca catechu constitutes 19.17% of homestead vegetation of the area followed by Artocarpus heterophyllus, which occupies 10.34%. Margalef index showed that there is no major difference (5.11 for large, 5.49 for medium, 4.73 for small) across the different size classes and Shannon-Weiner Index of the study area varies from 2.75 to 2.98. Results show that the average annual homestead income varied from US$108.69 to US$291.67 and contribute 6.63% of the household income.

Keywords: Homestead, Rural livelihoods, Species diversity, Bangladesh

Location: Domar upazila under Nilphamari district of Bangladesh

Start Date:

End Date:

Program Area: Socio-economic and Policy

Commodity: Plant

Objectives:

The present study was an initiative to identify the plant diversity and the contribution of homestead forest to the livelihoods of the people at Domar Upazila (subdistrict) in Nilphamari district, Bangladesh.

Methodology:

Study area The study was conducted in Domar upazila under Nilphamari district of Bangladesh lying in between 26°02' and 26°18' north latitudes and between 88°46' and 88°54' east longitudes. The upazila is bounded on the north by West Bengal of India, on the south by Sadar upazila, and on the west by Debiganj upazila. Among the ten unions (local government unit) of the upazila, five unions as primary units (PUs) were selected randomly for the study. Then five villages (secondary units) one from each union were randomly selected and socio-economic survey was carried out for categorizing the households. It was found that the farm size is proportional to the socio-economic status of the households and they were then divided into three categories dependent on the farm size: large (>0.2ha), medium (0.14-0.2 ha) and small (<0.14 ha) (Millat-e-Mustafa, 1997). 40 households (10 from large category, 15 from both small and medium categories) were then selected randomly as ultimate sampling unit for data collection and the head of the household (irrespective of sex) were interviewed with the help of semi-structured questionnaire. All 40 gardens used in this study were inventoried for their plants. All plant species that were deemed useful to the farmer found in the sample area were listed. Number of individuals of each species per homestead were noted to determine the density (the numerical strength of a species in relation to a definite unit space is called its density, Shukla and Chandel, 1980), relative density (RD), Shannon-Wiener Index (H), Margalef Index, evenness index (e), and index of dominance (c). Later four were calculated for each category of land holding size classes. As described by Margalef (1958) and Krebs (1985), the following equations were used: RD = (Total no. of individuals of a species in all the quadrates/Total no. of individual of all species) X 100 (1) Margalef Index = (S-1) / lnN (2) H=-∑Pi lnPi (3) c =∑ (ni/N)2 (4) e = H/log S (5) Where, S is the number of species; ni is the number of individuals of each species, Pi is the number of individuals of one species divided by total number of individuals in the samples; N is the total number of individuals in the sample.

Source of Information: Journal of Forest Science Vol. 26, No. 1, pp. 9~15, April 2010

Article Link (Online Journal):

Funding Source:

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Total Budget (Tk.) :

Achievement/Findings:

In an extremely environmentally and economically stressed country such as Bangladesh, where over 80% farmers are smallholders, homestead forest may be the only viable means of survival for the large rural populace (Ali, 2005). Homestead forest plays an important role in household economy by providing subsistence cash income and supplying various materials for household usage. From the study it was revealed that the homestead supports varied plant species and acts as a production unit for diverse goods and services. The results of this investigation indicate that a considerable array of plant species are nurtured in homesteads and these are an essential resource on which families depend. Therefore effective development and management of homestead forest is essential for sustainable growth and poverty reduction.

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