Agrobiodiversity in the rural home gardens as the food reserve for climate change adaptation (case study: Samin sub-watershed, Central Java, Indonesia)

Joko Sutrisno, Maria Theresia Sri Budiastuti, Didik Suprayogo, Endang Setia Muliawati

Abstract: The unpredictable yields of crops as the adverse impact of global climate change must be anticipated by growing plants of various species in rural home gardens for food reserves. The research was aimed at documenting the species diversity in the home gardens which can be used as food resources. The survey was carried out on Latosol, Mediteran, and Grumusol soil types. Each type of soil was represented by 30 units of randomly chosen home gardens, with the ranging elevation between 106 m and 272 m a.s.l. The plant diversity, type of growth, and plant utilization were observed. The results showed that the different soil types of the home gardens correspond with the diversity of the grown plant species and the existence of specific plant species can be the characteristics of each soil type. The home gardens on Mediteran soils have abundant food reserves, which the highest Shannon-Wiener index in the first and second strata are 2.87 and 2.60. Mango is the most important tree grown on all soil types, while peanut, papaya, and ginger are the most important plants in the first strata on Latosol, Mediteran, and Grumusol soils respectively.

Keywords: agrobiodiversity; edible plants; food reserve; home garden; Indonesia

Date published: 2018-11-02