Profile and use of multi-species tree crops in the homesteads of Gazipur District, Central Bangladesh

Agroforestry combines agriculture and forestry technologies to create more integrated, diverse, productive, profitable, healthy and sustainable land-use systems. This study was conducted in Gazipur district (former greater Dhaka district) of Bangladesh and focused on the species composition of homegardens, species richness, species density, relative prevalence, species diversity index, purpose of growing trees and number of trees in homestead. The study covered 90 households from three upazillas (administrative entities, subdistricts), 30 from each upazilla. Farm categories were sampled with reference to landless, marginal, small, medium and large size. The information was collected by using a structured questionnaire, formal and informal interviews and field observations. Some information was also gathered by group discussion with the farmers. The information was analyzed by using descriptive statistics and mathematical analysis. The average size of the homestead in the study area was 0.083 ha which increased with the increase of farm size. The homestead area occupied by trees and shrubs in landless and marginal farm categories were smaller than that in the larger farm category. A total of 43 plant species (28 were horticultural plants and 15 were timber and fuelwood plants) were identified and recorded from the 90 households surveyed. Among the horticultural plants, the most prevalent species was jackfruit (Artocarpus heterophyllus, relative prevalence, RP = 26.3), followed by mango (Mangifera indica, RP = 22.5), mahagoni (Swietenia mahagoni, RP = 10.3), coconut (Cocos nucifera, RP = 9.9), teak (Tectona grandis, RP = 9.7), guava (Psidium guajava, RP = 8.2) and litchi (Litchi chenensis, RP = 5.7), while low prevalence species were minjiri (Cassia siamea, RP = 0.03), gora neem (Melia azadirach, RP = 0.18), tamarind (Tamarindus indica, RP = 0.19) and shimul (Bombox ceiba, RP = 0.21). Among the different farm categories, the highest number/type of species (17) regardless of forest or horticultural species was found in the large farm category whereas the lowest number/type of species (7) was found in the landless farm category. The number of trees per 100 m2 homesteads decreased gradually from landless farms (3.5 trees/100 m2) to large farms (1.85 trees/100 m2). Least number of trees was found in the group of above 25 years of age. However, the larger farm categories had more old trees (> 25 years) than the smaller farm categories. Most of the farmers prefer fruit trees over fuel/timber species and species diversity was higher for fruit trees (7.3) than for timber trees (4.8). Jackfruit was identified as an important cash generating crop in the study area. In the future, the homegarden will be a viable alternative to mono-cropped field agriculture. It also is a highly valuable source of genetic diversity.