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View metadata, citation and similar papers at core.ac.uk brought to you by CORE provided by ScholarSpace at University of Hawai'i at Manoa Ethnobotanical Research in Homegardens of Small Farmers in the Alpine Region of Osttirol (Austria): An example for Bridges Built and Building Bridges Brigitte Vogl-Lukasser and Christian R. Vogl Introduction The importance of farmers’ activities in the management ests and alpine meadows beginning at 2,000 m above sea of natural resources in the diverse and risk prone area of level, used as summer grazing grounds and for hay pro- the Alps is discussed frequently in public. But, analysis of duction. On average, each of the households observed the development of the alpine farming system with focus keeps 12 dairy cows, 2 pigs, 12 hens and 30 sheep. 50% on traditional ecological knowledge of the rural population of the respective farms are still managed on a full-time ba- has not been realized yet. This paper presents traditional sis, 50% are managed on a part-time basis. knowledge on the management of alpine homegardens, and shows its development in the context of the mosaic of The Managed Mosaic at Alpine farmers’ activities. Farms in Eastern Tyrol Method Eastern Tyrol in Austria (Lienz district) is characterized by a high proportion of mountain areas. Adaptive man- In 1997 and 1998, 196 homegardens on farms randomly agement of natural resources by Alpine small farmers has drawn from 12 communities in Eastern Tyrol were inves- created a typical diverse and multifunctional landscape. tigated. Each year, cultivated plant species (occurrence Homegardens are one element of this managed mosaic. and abundance) were surveyed on three separate dates. Until the 1960s the managed mosaic of a typical farm Interviews were also carried out with each of the women in Eastern Tyrol consisted of: a) the herbal garden; b) a responsible for these homegardens. These interviews col- small extensive pasture with fruit trees; c) plots close to lected information on the uses of the different plants and the homestead for vegetables, fiber crops, cereals for hu- on characteristics describing the location, layout, and im- man consumption and fodder; d) forests with use of tim- portance of the garden. In 1997, 1998 and 2001, 27 el- ber, animal fodder, bedding and fire wood; e) hunting and derly women and men were additionally asked about the gathering of berries, mushrooms and medical plants; f) management of farms over the last 70 years with special focus on homegardens. Quantitative methods and inter- views were complemented by participant observation. Correspondence Annual precipitation in the district of Lienz (Eastern Ty- rol) is 850 - 1,150 mm and mean annual temperature 4.8 Brigitte Vogl-Lukasser & Christian R. Vogl, Arbeitsgruppe - 6.9 °C (Waschgler 1993). The farms surveyed are situ- Wissenssysteme und Innovationen, Institut fuer Oekolo- ated between 600 and 1,641 m above sea level. The aver- gischen Landbau, am Department für nachhaltige Agra age area of agricultural land located near the homestead rsysteme,Universitaet fuer Bodenkultur, Gregor Mendel is 7 hectares, and mainly consists of hay meadows. 47% Strasse 33, A-1180 Wien, AUSTRIA. [email protected]. ac.at, [email protected] of the surveyed farms have small plots (average size 0,01 hectares) of field vegetables (mainly potatoes, Solanum tuberosum) grown on moderate slopes. Special cultiva- tions (e.g. orchards, homegardens) are an average of Ethnobotany Research & Applications 2:111-137 (2004) 0,01 hectares in size. In addition, most farmers own for- http://hdl.handle.net/10125/145 112 Ethnobotany Research & Applications large alpine pastures and hay meadows in higher regions in distances of > 5 km away from the farm. A high diversity Mixed cropping is in effect practiced through the high level of animal species were kept at the farm. The main pur- of species diversity in the homegarden as a whole (mean: pose of all agricultural activities had been securing sub- 42 species/garden), though different species are not cul- sistence. tivated simultaneously in one bed. The beds in the center of the gardens (85 % of the total area) are dedicated to Today farmers work mainly for cash income by breeding food crops, while attractive flowering plants are generally cattle for milk and meat. Some traditional techniques of grown in the beds adjacent to the surrounding fence. plant management for farmers’ subsistence are still com- mon: Herbal gardens developed to highly diverse ho- A comparison of this modern situation with the reports of megardens with vegetables, herbs and ornamentals. Tra- older women shows that there has been no notable break ditional management of fruit trees is still alive e.g. because with tradition in terms of position and appearance. Man- of cultural importance of locally produced fruit, juice and agement, as described above, has also remained broadly distilled liquor. Gathering of mushrooms, medical herbs or unchanged. However, farmers’ wives now invest more la- berries is reduced (in extension,) but still common. In con- bor in gardening than their predecessors did. Older wom- trast, areas for cereals, fiber crops and field vegetables, en report that in former times, gardens were smaller and except potatoes, were abandoned in favor of pastures and women would work in them only if they had any time left hay meadows. Fodder or bedding based on forest species over after dealing with all their other duties on the farm. has disappeared. Management of higher alpine pastures Much of the labor previously required for the cultivation of and hay meadows changed significantly. cereals, field vegetables and fiber crops (Linum usitatissi- mum was, for example, very labor intensive) is now dedi- As a consequence the appearance of landscape has cated to garden work (Vogl-Lukasser et al. 2002). changed, but homestead areas are still a small scale pat- tern of locally adapted management strategies. Diversity Composition of Homegardens is created and maintained by farmers particularly in those cases where subsistence is of high importance for fami- The floral composition of the homegardens did not vary lies. much across the region until the 1970s. According to the older women, around 51 species were found across the Farmers not only produce food, but also protect a sen- region and mean occurrence of species per homegarden sitive and threatened environment. They safeguard and did not exceed 10. manage an area which represents a living and working space for many people; they provide recreational resourc- During the last 3 decades, field vegetables no longer cul- es for local inhabitants, scenery for tourists, various re- tivated in arable plots near the homestead (e.g. Brassica sources for hunters, gatherers and artisans, and habitats oleracea var. capitata alba, Phaseolus vulgaris ssp. vul- for local flora and fauna. Many farmers also have a strong garis var. nanus, Pisum sativum ssp. sativum) were intro- influence on the production of renewable hydroelectric en- duced to the homegardens by farmers’ wives. Similarly at- ergy and on logging and reforestation activities. tractive flowering weeds, whose life-cycle or propagation is closely linked to cereal cultivation or the existence of Management of Homegardens fallows (e.g. Adonis aestivalis, Agrostemma githago, Cen- taurea cyanus, Lilium bulbiferum ssp. bulbiferum) were in- Homegardens differ little in terms of location and layout, troduced. Farmers’ wives were aware that these species except in terms of area (12 m2 - 220 m2). They are gen- would no longer flourish under new farming conditions un- erally found right next to the farmhouses and consist of a less they were taken into the gardens. series of ordered and raised beds. The species diversity of ornamental plants increased from The homegarden is one of the responsibilities of the farm- 10 to 420 over the last 20 years, but the area used for or- er’s wife. Modern horticultural technologies and methods namental plants (approximately 15% of the garden) has have yet to have an impact on homegardens in Eastern not increased. Ornamental plants were used mainly in re- Tyrol; the women use very simple tools made locally or ligious customs, but the associated knowledge is in some maintained and repaired on the farm. There is no indica- cases in decline. In particular, plants with symbolic reli- tion of the kind of rationalization where labor is replaced gious value are either no longer to be found in the region by machinery or other equipment. Only for irrigation sim- studied (e.g. Lilium candidum), or are only recognized as ple gardening equipment is used (such as hosepipes and such by the older women (e.g. Paeonia officinalis ssp. of- sprinklers). 181 of the homegardens studied make use of ficinalis). manure from the farm’s own cattle. Mulching or compost- ing are rarely practiced. Synthetic fertilizers, pesticides or Many previously unknown food crops (vegetables, spices, herbicides are rarely applied. herbs for teas, salad), particularly the wide range of veg- http://hdl.handle.net/10125/145 Vogl-Lukasser & Vogl - Ethnobotanical Research in Homegardens of Small 113 Farmers in the Alpine Region of Osttirol (Austria) etable species, have only been introduced to homegar- cus on spices and medical use, lettuce (Lactuca sativa dens in the last 20 years. Plants used for human nutrition var. capitata), and a few ornamental plants used for cul- cover a larger area than plants used for other purposes. tural purposes. Since the seventies, however, the main Some of these species are still in the process of being component in these kinds of gardens has changed from “tested” by women. Women plant only one or a few indi- herbs to vegetables, with the focus on human nutrition. vidual plants of these species. If the species respond to Gardens still serve ornamental and productive purposes farmers’ criteria (e.g.

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