Hostname: page-component-cd9895bd7-p9bg8 Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-12-28T14:58:00.443Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false
  • English
  • Français

Garden production systems and food security in Ghana: Characteristics of traditional knowledge and management systems

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  12 February 2007

Emmanuel K. Yiridoe  and
Vincent M. Anchirinah
Emmanuel K. Yiridoe*
Affiliation:
Associate Professor, Department of Business and Social Sciences, Nova Scotia Agricultural College, PO Box 550, Truro, Nova Scotia, B2N 5E3, Canada.
Vincent M. Anchirinah
Affiliation:
Research Scientist, Socio-Economics Division, Crops Research Institute, PO Box 3785, Kumasi, Ghana.
*
*Corresponding author: [email protected]
Get access Rights & Permissions [Opens in a new window]

Abstract

There is limited documented scientific information on garden production systems managed in developing countries, partly because both researchers and research administrators have, until recently, ignored them as legitimate areas of study, and because such production systems have been regarded as informal production activities, managed outside conventional market and economic channels. Yet in a developing country such as Ghana, these production systems are potentially able to contribute substantially to the food security and health needs of households. This study was aimed primarily at providing critical scientific information for understanding the complex web of production and management factors associated with garden production systems. A total of 300 survey responses, representing the Sudan savannah, Guinea savannah and moist deciduous forest agro-ecological zones of Ghana, were analyzed (27% of respondents were females and 73% were males). Several hypotheses from the field agriculture literature were tested to determine their relevance in garden production systems. Although, for the country as a whole, a variety of garden crops are cultivated, each agro-ecological zone concentrated on a set of four major crops, with the actual food crops differing across agro-ecological zones. The type of protective fencing used was not statistically associated with land tenure (i.e., own versus rented land) status of the gardener (χ2=3.285, P=0.4501). Gender responsibilities in garden production and management tended to be more equally shared in the forest agro-ecology, where garden crops are cultivated for household consumption and for generating family income. In contrast, in the two savannah zones, adult males undertook a disproportionate share of activities to produce garden crops that were primarily for marketing. Valuable information on production and management exist within the traditional garden production systems studied, and range from socio-economic, agronomic and medicinal considerations in selecting garden crops and fruit trees, to ecological monitoring systems and strategies for garden management.

Keywords

food securitygarden production systemsGhanamedicinal crops
Type
Research Article
Information
Renewable Agriculture and Food Systems , Volume 20 , Issue 3 , September 2005 , pp. 168 - 180
Copyright
Copyright © Cambridge University Press 2005

Access options

Get access to the full version of this content by using one of the access options below. (Log in options will check for institutional or personal access. Content may require purchase if you do not have access.)

References

1Fernandes, E.C.M. and Nair, P.K.R. 1986. An evaluation of the structure and function of tropical homegardens. Agricultural Systems 21(4): 279–310.Google Scholar
2Gerstl, S. 2001. The economic costs and impact of home gardening in Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso. PhD dissertation, Swiss Tropical Institute, Basle, Switzerland.Google Scholar
3Niñez, V. 1985. Introduction: household gardens and small scale food production. Food and Nutrition Bulletin 7(3). Available at Web site http://www.unu.edu.unupress/food/8F073e/8F073E00.htm (verified November) 2003.Google Scholar
4Nugent, R.A. 1997. The significance of urban agriculture. Urban Agriculture Notes. City Farmer. Canada Office of Urban Agriculture, Vancouver, BC, Canada.Google Scholar
5Hart, K. 1973. The informal income opportunities and the structure of urban employment in Ghana. Journal of Modern African Studies 11: 61–89.Google Scholar
6Soemarwoto, O. and Conway, G.R. 1992. The Javanese homegarden. Journal of Farming Systems Research-Extension 2(3): 95–118.Google Scholar
7Drescher, A.W. and Ianquinta, D.L. 1999. Urban and peri-urban food production: A new challenge for the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) of the United Nations.FAO,Rome. p. 67.Google Scholar
8Boncodin, R. and Campilan, D. 2000. Dynamics in tropical home gardens. Urban Agriculture Magazine 1(1). On-line version available at http://www.ruaf.org/news 11–1.html (verified November 2003).Google Scholar
9Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO).1998. Feeding cities In The State of Food and Agriculture 1998. Cities Collection DT⊘39-98E. Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO),Rome..Google Scholar
10Asare, E.O., Oppong, S.K. and Twum-Ampofo, K. 1990 Home gardens in humid tropics Tropical. In Landauer, K. and Brazil, M. (eds). Tropical Home Gardens. The United Nations University Press, Tokyo, Japan. p. 80–93.Google Scholar
11Fernandes, E.C.M., Oktingati, A. and Maghembe, J. 1984. The Chagga homegardens: a multistoried agroforestry cropping system on Mt. Kilimanjaro, Northern Tanzania. Agroforestry Systems 2: 73–86.Google Scholar
12International Food Policy Research Institute. 2003. Transforming ideas into action. IFPRI Forum, June. International Food Policy Research Institute, Washington, DC.Google Scholar
13Groh, T. and McFadeen, S.H. 1990 Farms of tomorrow: community supported farms, farm supported communities. Bio-Dynamic Farming and Gardening Association, Kimberton, PAGoogle Scholar
14Ruthenberg, H. 1980. Farming Systems in the Tropics. 3rd ed. Oxford University Press, London.Google Scholar
15Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) 2001. Improving Nutrition through Home Gardening: A Training Package for Preparing Field Workers in Africa.FAO (Food and Nutrition Division),Rome.Google Scholar
16Kroll, R. 1997. Market Gardening. Macmillan Education, London.Google Scholar
17Topoleski, L.D. 1975. The Complete Vegetable Garden Guide. Guide No. 20. Service Communications, New York.Google Scholar
18Iaquinta, D.L. and Drescher, A.W. 2000 Defining periurban: Understanding rural–urban linkages and their connection to institutional contexts. Paper presented at the Tenth World Congress of the International Rural Sociology Association. Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.Google Scholar
19Weisberg, H.F., Krosnick, J.A. and Bowen, B.D. 1996. An Introduction to Survey Research, Polling and Data Analysis. 3rd ed. SAGA Publications, Thousand Oaks, CA.Google Scholar
20Ministry of Food and Agriculture 1997. Agriculture in Ghana: Facts and Figures. Policy Planning, Monitoring and Evaluation. Ministry of Food and Agriculture, Accra.Google Scholar
21International Monetary Fund. 2000. Ghana: Statistical Appendix. IMF Staff Country Report No. 1. IMF, Publication Services, Washington, DC. Also available at Web site http://www.imf.org/external/pubs/ft/scr/scr/2000/cr0002.pdf(verified June 2003).CrossRefGoogle Scholar
22Anchirinah, V.M., Addison, M., Dapaah, H. and Yiridoe, E.K. 2000. Prospects of using improved intermediate means of transport in Ghanaian agriculture: a survey. Journal of Sustainable Agriculture 17(2/3): 145–168.Google Scholar
23Jolliffe, D. 1998. Skills, schooling, and household income in Ghana. World Bank Economic Review 12(1): 81–104.Google Scholar
24Ewusi, K. 1990. Changes in Land Tenure Systems and Poverty Alleviation in Africa. Ghana Publishing Corporation, Tema, Ghana.Google Scholar
25Tripp, R.B. 1982. Time allocation in northern Ghana: An example of the Random Visit Method. The Journal of Developing Areas 16(3): 391–400.Google Scholar
26Gerner, H., ViskerC., C., and Bruce, P. 1995. Ghana Fertilizer Privatization Scheme: Private Sector Roles and Public Sector Responsibilities in Meeting Needs of Farmers. Fertilizer Sector Studies on Africa. Vol. 5. International Fertilizer Development Centre—Africa, Lome.Google Scholar
27Doss, R.C. and Morris, M.L. 2001. How does gender affect the adoption of agricultural innovations? The case of improved maize technology in Ghana. Agricultural Economics 25(1): 27–39.Google Scholar
28Doss, R.C. 2001. Men's crops? Women's crops? The gender patterns of cropping in Ghana. Paper presented at the American Agricultural Economics Association Conference,Chicago, IL.Google Scholar
29Conway, G.R. 1994. The sustainability of agricultural development: trade-off with productivity, stability and equitability. Journal of Farming Systems Research and Extension 4(2): 1–14.Google Scholar