In recent years the composition of urban vegetation has become far more complex than that of
the surrounding natural vegetation. This is mainly due to the influence that humans have on the
creation of new plant communities and the management of urban green spaces. Green spaces
are fundamental to the restoration and maintenance of biodiversity in areas that have been
severely impacted by urban development. Green spaces provide various ecosystem services
and benefits for the health and well-being of urban residents, and can help to reduce the effects
of global climate change.
The most understudied green space in the entire urban green infrastructure is homegardens.
Homegardens contribute greatly to the species composition of urban and rural settlements and
are important in situ conservation sites that help to protect rare and endemic species. They are
essential agricultural systems, especially in rural settlements, that provide both sources of
additional income generation and food supply. In developing countries such as South Africa,
very few studies have been done on homegardens and the benefits they provide to
homeowners and to urban ecosystems in general. However, since South Africa become
committed to the United Nations Millennium Development Goals in 2000, more research has
been done on the potential of homegardens for poverty alleviation.
The aim of this study was to determine the patterns of plant diversity in a rural settlement and to
determine to what extent the socioeconomic status of the inhabitants influences the plant
species composition of the settlement. The settlement of Ganyesa, situated in the Bophirima
district in the North-West Province, was chosen for the study. Using GIS techniques, a grid was
placed over the settlement and plant surveys were done every 500 m. Different land-use types
were identified during the completion of the survey, namely natural areas, fragmented natural
areas, fallow fields, road verges, wetlands, home gardens and institutional gardens. The
national South African census data from 2001 proved to be too unreliable to accurately
determine the SES of the residents in Ganyesa. Consequently, a social survey was completed
by means of a questionnaire to determine the socioeconomic status of the owners of the
homegardens under study.
Clear differences could be observed between the land-use types and the indigenous and alien
species composition, which were indicated in kriging maps. In comparison with the natural
areas, homegardens contained more alien species than the surrounding natural areas. The
vegetation composition for all the homegardens were correlated with the residents
socioeconomic status along a socioeconomic gradient, ranging from low, to medium to high. ANCOVA, multiple regressions and basic statistical analyses were performed using all the
vegetation and socioeconomic data. Meaningful correlations occur between the socioeconomic
status of the homeowners and the plant diversity of their gardens. / Thesis (M. Environmental Science)--North-West University, Potchefstroom Campus, 2010.
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:netd.ac.za/oai:union.ndltd.org:nwu/oai:dspace.nwu.ac.za:10394/5676 |
| Date | January 2009 |
| Creators | Davoren, Elandrie |
| Publisher | North-West University |
| Source Sets | South African National ETD Portal |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | Thesis |
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