CHAPTER 3

CULTIVATION OF MEDICINAL PLANTS AS A TOOL

FOR BIODIVERSITY CONSERVATION AND
POVERTY ALLEVIATION IN THE AMATOLA
REGION, SOUTH AFRICA

K.F. WIERSUM#, A.P. DOLD###, M. HUSSELMAN# AND

M. COCKS##
#
Forest and Nature Conservation Policy Group, Wageningen University, The
Netherlands
##
Institute of Social and Economic Research, Rhodes University, South Africa
###
Selmar Schonland Herbarium, Rhodes University, South Africa

Abstract. This paper describes the assumptions and results of a study to assess whether cultivation of
medicinal plants can serve as a tool for combined biodiversity conservation and poverty alleviation. The
study was carried out in the Amatola region of Eastern Cape, South Africa, where sustained beliefs in
medicinal plant use, also under non-traditional conditions, has resulted in an increase in commercial
demands. It was based on the assumption of poverty alleviation not only referring to an increase in
income and labour, but also an increase in social capital and human dignity. The study assessed the local
perceptions of the use and cultivation of medicinal plants and the need for conservation of these plants, as
well as the features of already ongoing cultivation practices and options for increased cultivation. It
consisted of participatory assessments in three villages involving around 250 persons and participatory
trials with 14 rural women selling medicinal plants on urban markets. The study indicated that the
growing demand for medicinal plants is related to the great cultural significance attached to medicinal
plants. The growing demand has not only resulted in increased hazard for overexploitation of wild plant
populations, but also increased interest in cultivation. Several factors need attention in linking of
biodiversity conservation and poverty alleviation: (a) selection of specific target groups and the
identification of the links between cultivation practices and livelihood conditions, (b) role of cultural
factors in medicinal plant use and cultivation, and (c) cultivation by local people being not primarily
based on local awareness of the loss of wild species, but on local perceptions about financially lucrative
medicinal plants. It is concluded that the scope for cultivation of medicinal plants for combined
biodiversity conservation and poverty alleviation should not be considered light-heartedly. However, the
impact can be positive in case cultivation is considered within the context of protecting and strengthening
the cultural values of biodiversity and creating a positive attitude towards biodiversity conservation in
general.
Keywords: cultural values; financial values; medicinal-plant traders; participatory technology
development

43
R.J. Bogers, L.E. Craker and D.Lange (eds), Medicinal and Aromatic Plants, 43-57.
© 2006 Springer. Printed in the Netherlands
44 K.F. WIERSUM ET AL.

INTRODUCTION
Since the Johannesburg Earth Summit in 2002 much attention has been given to the
possibility of combining biodiversity conservation and poverty alleviation. Within
this context the option of stimulating the production of non-timber forest products
(NTFPs) is often considered promising (Arnold and Perez 2001; Wunder 2001).
When considering the potential of NTFP production to contribute to poverty
alleviation two options need attention, e.g., the stimulation of either sustainable
exploitation of wild NTFPs in natural forests or cultivation in farming systems
(Wong and Hall 2004; Ros-Tonen and Wiersum 2005). These development options
are well illustrated in the case of medicinal plants. In many countries medicinal
plants are collected from the wild vegetation. But in response to the combined
impacts of dwindling supplies due to overexploitation of the natural resources and
increasing demands due to population growth and growing global markets medicinal
plants are also increasingly introduced into farming systems. Such cultivation often
takes place in multiple cropping systems including agroforestry systems. For
instance, medicinal plants may be planted in the lower strata of multistrata systems
such as homegardens (Rao et al. 2004).
The two types of medicinal plant exploitation can be related to two different
conservation strategies: in situ preservation through development of improved forms
of controlled use of naturally growing plants, and in domo conservation through
development of cultivation practices as a means to conserve the species within the
human domain (Heywood 1999; Wiersum 2003). It is increasingly recognized that
within the context of combining biodiversity conservation and poverty alleviation,
not only in situ preservation of valuable wild plant species should be given attention,
but also in domo conservation (Ros-Tonen and Wiersum 2005). This form of
conservation is based on the understanding that rather than a dichotomy between
wild and cultivated lands there exist a wide array of plant production systems and
different degrees of (semi)domestication of wild plants (Wiersum and Shackleton
2005). The process of domestication is often interpreted as referring to the
modification of a plant’s morphological characteristics and genetic make-up as well
as the artificialization of the biophysical environment in which the plant is growing.
In a broader sense, however, the concept has been interpreted as also including the
acculturalization of a plant to a social management environment (Wiersum 1997).
Under the first interpretation, the process of stimulating domestication is normally
considered a two-phased process in which first proper crop cultivation techniques
are developed by scientists, followed by subsequent transfer of the scientifically
developed domestication technology to potential growers. According to the more
inclusive second interpretation, the stimulation process involves a socio-technical
approach in which attention is given to the interaction between technical, cultural
and institutional dimensions of domestication. According to this interpretation,
technology development is not a value-free process, but rather a process in which
human values and technical options are interrelated. Especially when addressing the
development needs of underprivileged groups of people, it is considered essential
that technologies are developed that are adjusted to the specific social values and
livelihood assets of the intended target groups.
 CULTIVATION OF MEDICINAL PLANTS 45

This paper will discuss the design and results of a multi-focused study on the
scope for cultivation of medicinal plants as a means to contribute towards poverty
alleviation. The study was designed in accordance with the concept of domestication
as a multi-dimensional process involving technical, cultural and institutional
changes. Consequently, the stimulation of cultivation was conceived of as involving
a location-specific development process in which cultivation practices are developed
on the basis of both technical options, socio-cultural conditions and specific
livelihood conditions of the intended cultivators. First we will elaborate what aspects
are of importance when designing research projects aiming at the stimulation of
medicinal plant cultivation as a means to poverty alleviation. Next we will sketch
the importance of medicinal plants in South Africa and describe the research area
and methodology. Then we give an overview of local perception regarding the use
and cultivation of medicinal plants as well as the local beliefs regarding the need for
conservation of medicinal plants. Finally, we describe the results of experimental
trials to stimulate medicinal plant cultivation by female medicinal plant hawkers.
This information will serve to answer the question: What aspects need attention
when stimulating medicinal plant cultivation as a means to contribute towards a
combination of in domo conservation and poverty alleviation?

DESIGNING RESEARCH ON STIMULATION OF MEDICINAL PLANT

CULTIVATION AS A MEANS TO POVERTY ALLEVIATION
When designing research on options for stimulating cultivation of medicinal plants
within the framework of a biodiversity conservation and poverty alleviation
approach, two aspects need careful consideration, viz., how to interpret the concept
of poverty alleviation and what research approach should be applied. These two
aspects are interrelated. At present it is agreed that the concept of poverty has
several dimensions. In the past it was thought that it referred to an increase in
income and employment, but at present it is understood to include also an increase
in social and cultural capital. Poverty alleviation should not only be conceived of as
relating to a person’s instrumental ability to make a living, but also to a person’s
ability to make life meaningful and to undertake emancipatory action (Bebbington
1999). Within the context of contributing towards meaningful activities, it is
interesting to note that in South Africa amayeza are not only used for healing of
physical illnesses, but also for protection against misfortunes with natural and
supernatural causes for cultural ceremonies (Du Toit 1980; Hammond-Tooke 1989;
Cocks and Møller 2002). Therefore, conservation of these species will affect the
ability for local people to continue their cultural assets. However, the strong cultural
component of ‘medicinal’ plant use may also prove a constraint for in domo
conservation. This is related to the belief that metaphysical dangers may destroy the
healing powers of plants, and that collection of the plants from the wild is part of the
ritual use of amayeza (medicinal plants sensu lato) (Prins 1996). Programmes to
stimulate cultivation should carefully consider such cultural values.
Within the context of contributing to emancipatory action, two aspects are of
relevance. In the first place it is important that research projects employ a
46 K.F. WIERSUM ET AL.

participatory research approach in which researchers should facilitate and stimulate

experiments by the intended target groups rather than act as technology developers
themselves. In the second place, the selection of species as well as cultivation
practices should as much as possible complement any already existing local
experiences on cultivating medicinal crops. Rather than supposing that all medicinal
crops are still collected from the wild vegetation without consideration to trends in
availability, it should be investigated what local knowledge on trends in availability
of the medicinal crops exist and whether individual local innovators have already
started cultivating medicinal plants. Such sporadic local knowledge could form an
entrance point for stimulating further innovations.

USE OF MEDICINAL PLANTS IN SOUTH AFRICA

Medicinal plants (locally called muthi in Zulu language and amayeza in Xhosa
language) are still widely used in the health-care system of South Africa,
particularly by the African population. According to Mander and Le Breton (2005)
there are up to 100 million traditional-remedy consumers in southern Africa and as
many as 500,000 traditional healers. Up to 700,000 tonnes of plant material is
consumed annually with an estimated value of as much as 150 million US dollars
per annum. Medicinal plants are often a basic requirement for the treatment of
certain conditions irrespective of education and income levels (Cocks and Dold
2000). The use of traditional medicine is not confined to rural, low-income groups,
but also prevails in urban areas.
The trade in traditional medicines forms part of a multimillion-rand ‘hidden
economy’ in southern Africa (Cunningham 1989). Stimulated by high population
growth rates, rapid urbanization and the important cultural value placed on
traditional medicines this trade is now greater than at any time in the past. At a
national level, it is estimated that annually 20,000 tonnes of material from over 700
plant species are traded, with a value of approximately R 270 million (US$ 60
million) (Mander 2004). The use and trade of plants for medicine is no longer
confined to traditional healers, but has entered both the informal and formal
entrepreneurial sectors of the South-African economy, resulting in an increase in the
number of herbal gatherers and traders (Cunningham 1989; Dauskardt 1990; 1991;
Cocks et al. 2004).
The intensive harvesting of wild medicinal plants due to the increasing use has in
many places resulted in overexploitation, and forms a serious threat to biodiversity
in the region. Several studies attest to a trend of increasing harvesting pressures on
traditional supply areas linked to a growing shortage in supply of popular medicinal
plant species. The current demand for certain taxa exceeds supply, with traders
reporting acute shortages and price increases of these. As a result, several plant
species have been exploited to such an extent that they are seldom found in
unprotected areas (Cunningham 1991b; 1991a; Williams 2004).
Until recently, biodiversity conservation in South Africa was based on a law
enforcement approach, but it has become increasingly evident that this approach has
failed and that new, participatory methods are required. In response to the
 CULTIVATION OF MEDICINAL PLANTS 47

overexploitation of natural populations of medicinal plants, several efforts have

recently been attempted to conserve the diversity of medicinal plants. Two new
approaches are gaining increasing attention, i.e., conservation of biodiversity by
local community groups (Fabricius et al. 2004) and stimulation of cultivation as a
means to relieve the over-exploitation of natural populations (Mander et al. 1996;
Cunningham 1991a). A first systematic effort to stimulate cultivation of medicinal
plants was initiated by the Durban Parks Department in 1983 by establishing a
medicinal plant nursery in the Silverglen Nature Reserve (Crouch and Edwards
2004). Since this initiative, several other efforts have been undertaken to stimulate
medicinal plant cultivation through the establishment of medicinal plant nurseries.
Originally, most attention was given to the establishment of such professionally
managed nurseries as a means of making quality plant material available to local
people and as a training centre for teaching them suitable cultivation techniques.
However, gradually interest has grown in further stimulating medicinal plant
cultivation by augmenting the outreach activities with more active participatory
technology development. These development efforts are based on the principle
discussed above, that the stimulation of domestication of medicinal plants should not
be regarded as a process of transfer of professionally developed cultivation
techniques, but rather as a process of change in institutionally embedded local
resource use and management practices. Based on these premises, in 2002
researchers of Rhodes University, South Africa, together with collaborators from
Wageningen University, The Netherlands, started a research project to assess the
possibility to link biodiversity conservation and poverty alleviation, by stimulating
medicinal plant cultivation by people who at present depend on medicinal plant
trade for maintaining their livelihoods.

STUDY SITE AND METHODOLOGY

The project took place amongst the Xhosa people living in the Amatola region in
South Africa. This area belongs to one of the former homeland areas in the present
Eastern Cape province. The province is home to 15.5% (6.3 million) of South
Africa’s total population (40.6 million in 1996). Eighty-six percent of the Eastern
Cape population is African, 37% is urbanized, 41% of the households live in
traditional dwellings and 49% is unemployed while 31% of those employed earn
less than R 500 a month. The province incorporates two of the former ‘homelands’
of the apartheid era, viz., Ciskei and Transkei. In these former homeland areas many
aspects of traditional culture are still part of everyday life, even though many of the
inhabitants used to work as industrial labourers and are now dependent on state
grants such as pension payments. As a result of the past political and economic
changes, at present a large proportion of the population is to some extent reliant on
natural resources for direct subsistence use or as a form of income generation.
(Cocks and Wiersum 2003; Shackleton et al. 2002). Due to the low socioeconomic
standing of the predominantly rural and periurban Eastern Cape population the vast
majority of people use traditional methods of health care, and consequently
medicinal plant use is still very common. There is a vibrant and sizeable trade of
48 K.F. WIERSUM ET AL.

medicinal plants, most of which are collected from the wild causing high demands
on the natural resource base (Dold and Cocks 2002; Cocks et al. 2004). Many
medicines are derived from roots and bulbs, which are especially vulnerable to the
increasing harvesting pressure. Moreover, the harvesting techniques for medicinal
products from tree bark are often unsustainable. Consequently, there are clear signs
of depletion of stocks in several areas (Dold and Cocks 2001).

Research methodology
In order to assess whether a conscious combination of in domo resource
conservation and poverty alleviation is feasible in the research area, a multi-level
study was carried out. The first phase concerned a series of participatory appraisals
in order to contextualize the present social and cultural aspects of use and cultivation
of amayeza. A series of surveys, in-depth interviews and workshops took place
amongst the households in Cwengcwe and adjacent villages in the Amatola district
(Figure 1). Approximately 250 people participated in these surveys. Further details
on these participatory appraisals and their results are given by Husselman and
Postma (in prep.).

Figure 1. Research location

The second phase consisted of participatory cultivation trials with purposefully

selected potential growers from underprivileged people. The selection of this target
groups was based on the consideration that the project should explicitly address the
 CULTIVATION OF MEDICINAL PLANTS 49

option for domestication of medicinal plants by poor people who are already
actively engaged in the medicinal plant trade. It was thought that this would provide
the best chance that the cultivation practices will replace the collection of wild
plants rather than form only an additional production source. Within the medicinal
plant trade, four main categories of stakeholders can be distinguished in the research
area, viz., informal gatherers, hawkers, traditional healers and amayeza store owners
(Cocks et al. 2004). The hawkers, who can also be informal gatherers, are the
poorest of these stakeholders. They are predominantly (75%) women, have a low
level of education (50% having no schooling at all and 41% having left school after
junior level) and the majority (57%) is earning less then R 500 per month. Over 80%
of these hawkers live in rural areas and commute daily to urban areas where they
maintain informal trading stalls. Periodically they collect plants or they sell plants
from other village people (Cocks et al. 2004). As target group for the participatory
cultivation trials the project selected a group of 14 women hawker traders selling
medicinal plants at the King Williamstown informal market (Figure 1). These
women reside in different villages within the Amatola District Municipality and
travel almost daily to the urban market places. Homegardens were selected as the
best location for the cultivation trials. In the first place, homegardens are normally
the women’s domain as well as the last land resort for poor people (Ninez 1984).
Moreover, in homegardens both domesticated and wild plants are usually grown,
and they often serve as experimental areas for new crops (Ninez 1984; High and
Shackleton 2000).

CULTURAL PERCEPTIONS ON THE USE OF MEDICINAL PLANTS

From the appraisals it appeared that in the research area over one hundred plant
species are used as amayeza. The amayeza not only have a utilitarian value for
healing physical illnesses, but also have important cultural values. The Xhosa people
generally do not differentiate between the causation of diseases and misfortunes
(Cocks and Møller 2002), and amayeza can be used both for healing and for
protection against misfortunes with natural and supernatural causes. The use of
medicinal plants for protection against misfortune may involve protection against
evil spirits, treatment of sorcery impacts and use of amayeza as luck charms. The
distinction between these use categories is not absolute; an example of culturally
inspired health treatment is the use of specific medicinal plants for purging purposes
or for cleansing the blood. Amayeza may also be used in traditional ancestral-related
ceremonies. This mostly concerns the species Olea europaea subsp. africana
(locally called umnquma), Ptaeroxylon obliquum (umthathi), Rubia petiolaris
(impendulo) and Silene undulata (unozitholana). Approximately 90% of the people
in the study site use these species during the ritual sacrifice of a domestic animal on
behalf of the ancestors (isisiko).
Many people believe in the risk of metaphysical dangers destroying the healing
powers of amayeza. Two broad categories of metaphysical dangers can be
distinguished. The first is related to the belief that the ancestors are responsible for
the healing powers of amayeza species and therefore these need to be respected. As
50 K.F. WIERSUM ET AL.

a result there are specific traditional regulations on how to handle amayeza species.
Explanations on the exact nature of these rules varied between respondents, but the
most widespread opinion was that polluted people should avoid contact with these
plants. ‘Pollution’ is a temporary state of being, associated with an increased risk of
contamination by evil spirits (Ngubane 1977; Hammond-Tooke 1989). A person is
considered polluted during menstruation, after sexual intercourse, after childbirth
and when there is a death in the household. Additionally, travelling to distant places
may cause pollution. This condition lasts several days (opinions on the precise
number varied between respondents) or until ritual cleansing with, e.g., Drimia
capensis (inqwebeba) has occurred. The second metaphysical danger is
witchcraft/sorcery: people with the proper know-how could deliberately destroy the
powers of the amayeza species. Once again, opinions on this subject differed
between respondents. Some of the respondents only believed that witchcraft could
affect people and not amayeza, while others believe that amayeza species could only
be destroyed if others know what they are used for.
During the appraisals, some people voiced concerns about the loss of interest of
young people in using amayeza. However, in a special survey amongst grade-9 and -
10 highschool students it was found that although 95% of the students use medicines
from health clinics, still 82% are also using amayeza for both healing and protection
purposes. Almost 80% of the students stated that they would continue using
amayeza in the future. And in a parallel preliminary school survey, children
mentioned that they believed that the cultural forms of wild-plant use would
continue even if utilitarian uses such as fuelwood would be replaced by modern
substitutes (Cocks and Wiersum 2003).

CULTURAL BELIEFS ON THE CULTIVATION OF AMAYEZA

The beliefs in the metaphysical dangers destroying the healing powers of amayeza
have repercussions in respect to the acceptance of cultivated plants. In a survey
amongst 88 respondents, 50% of the respondents were not sure if the rules for
handling harvested amayeza in such a way that they fulfil the cultural requirements
are also applied when cultivating them. Only 24% felt that cultivated amayeza are
highly susceptible to losing their effectiveness when touched by polluted people,
whilst others believed that this could only happen after the plants are harvested or
through deliberate contact. Opinions on the species that could be affected also
differed; 30% of the respondents believed that all cultivated amayeza could lose
their power when touched by polluted people, and 20% felt that only some species
could be affected. Planting amayeza species in a separate and secluded place within
the homegarden was perceived by almost all the respondents as a viable means to
reduce the risk of contact with polluted people. Related to this, 28% of the
respondents considered it necessary to keep the fact that one is cultivating amayeza
species secret, and 41% felt that they could not openly share what they used their
amayeza species for. Only a few people thought it was possible to protect amayeza
from witchcraft/sorcery.
Despite these potential dangers, 89% of the respondents stated that they would
 CULTIVATION OF MEDICINAL PLANTS 51

use cultivated amayeza for healing or protection purposes. However, those species
that are collected following ritual practice and species indicated by the ancestors in
dreams could only be collected from the wild to remain effective. Thirty-eight
percent of the respondents considered it inappropriate to use cultivated amayeza
species for ritual purposes. The most common reason given was that the collection
of the plants from the wild is an essential part of the ritual. Others argued that
amayeza species are mainly sensitive to loss of effectiveness through contact with
polluted people and witchcraft, and that it is not the cultivation per se, but rather the
proper handling of species during cultivation which impacts on their power.

PERCEPTIONS ON THE NEED FOR CONSERVATION OF AMAYEZA

From the appraisals it appeared that in around 60% of the households at least one
household member collects amayeza for their own use or as a trade product. One
quarter of the gatherers do this mainly as a means of income generation, either as
traditional healer or as trader. An additional 25% of the people not only collect for
their own use, but also for neighbours or family members. Around 40% of the
households are already cultivating medicinal plants. Over 50% of the households
purchase amayeza from other villagers or from hawkers in towns. Some of these
buyers are not collecting amayeza themselves, but others only buy those amayeza
that they cannot find themselves.
In general people are aware that the present collection of wild amayeza is
unsustainable. About 70% of the people said that some species were difficult to find,
and just over 30% stated that certain species had completely disappeared. The
decrease was considered to be caused primarily by state laws limiting access to
forest products rather than overexploitation. Although people acknowledged the
decrease in availability in amayeza, hardly any concentrated efforts to address this
danger have been undertaken in the study area. Although legislation allows for the
controlled access to NTFPs in state forests, in the research area initial efforts at
participatory forest management were not yet successful.

EXISTING CULTIVATION PRACTICES AND INTEREST IN INCREASED

CULTIVATION
Although people did not explicitly mention cultivation of amayeza as a means to
offset the effects of decreasing access to wild populations, many people are already
cultivating at least some amayeza. In the appraisal study it was found that 42% of
the households are actually cultivating amayeza (Figure 2; see colour pages
elsewhere in this book). These cultivators involve both male and female persons.
Cultivation is restricted to the homegardens. Only a quarter of the respondents in the
appraisals had planted more than three species. Sometimes cultivation involves the
maintenance of plants that germinated naturally in the garden. In the case that
several species are cultivated, this often involves (female) traditional healers who
wanted to have easy access to plants to treat their patients.
Although the number of species cultivated per person is only very limited, in the
52 K.F. WIERSUM ET AL.

appraisal study over 50 species were found to be present in the homegardens. The
most popular are Artemisia afra, Eucomis autumnalis, Tulbaghia acutiloba,
Agapanthus praecox and Drimia elata (Table 1). This almost exclusively involves
herbaceous and bulbous species that are relatively easy to propagate and which
provide quick yields. Most plant propagation material is collected from the wild and
transplanted in the gardens. Only 18% of the cultivated species are slow-growing
woody species. Due to the impacts of the cultural beliefs surrounding the use of
amayeza, the plants are often planted in secluded spots of the gardens and they are
not mixed with vegetables or other food crops in order to prevent loss of power.

Table 1. The ten most frequently cultivated amayeza in order of frequency

No. Numeric and Botanical name, Xhosa Growth form and plant
relative frequency* name part used
1. 18 Artemisia afra Shrub
40% Umhlonyane Leaves and flowers
2. 12 Agapanthus praecox Small plant
27% Umkhondo Tuber
3. 10 Drimia elata Small plant
22% Umrateni Bulb
4. 7 Tulbaghia acutiloba Small plant
16% Itswele lomlambo Bulb
5. 7 Eucomis autumnalis Small plant
16% Inguduza 28 Bulb
6. 5 Haworthia attenuata Succulent
11% Intelezi encinci Whole plant
7. 5 Ruta graveolens Shrub
11% Ivendrik Leaves
8. 4 Gasteria bicolor Succulent
9% Intelezi Leaves
9. 4 Silene undulata Small plant
9% Unozitholana Roots
10. 3 Hypoxis hemerocallidea Small plant
7% Inongwe tuber
*
Frequency refers to the number of households (n=45) cultivating species
Source: Husselman and Postma (in prep.)

Results of trial cultivations

The women hawkers who participated in the trials were predominantly (80%) under
50 years of age, and about 65% had achieved grade-7 education against an average
of grade 5 for the overall local population. They were either a head of the household
(36%), a wife of the household head (28%) or a daughter; households consisted in
50% of the cases of at least six persons. The plants sold by them are partly collected
by themselves (around six species) and partly bought from other collectors (14
species). The time spent on travelling to the market and trading was on average 57
hours per week, while time spent on collecting and preparing medicinal plants was
 CULTIVATION OF MEDICINAL PLANTS 53

on average less than 11 hour per week. The estimated net income from the medicinal
plant trade is R 2400 - 7200 per annum. They were generally well aware that
overharvesting (mentioned by about 80%) and poor harvesting methods (mentioned
by around 15%) have resulted in a decrease of medicinal plants.
The trial participants were already more intensively involved in medicinal plant
cultivation than the average local households: 64% were already cultivating an
average of four species. After attending a training workshop at a medicinal plant
nursery their interest in cultivation further increased. This increased interest was
primarily based on their ideas regarding the commercial values of the plants, while
ideas on scarcity of species or cultural issues played only a minor role (Table 2).
Similar motives were found regarding the selection of species for cultivation (Table
3). Also in this case financial motives were stronger than cultural motives: preferred

Table 2. Reasons for medicinal plant cultivation by trial cultivators

Stated reason Percentage respondents

Don’t have to purchase species in the future 28%
Cultivation contributes to livelihoods 21%
Scarcity of certain species 21%
Don’t have to travel to collect plants 14%
Meet high demand for certain species 7%
Cultural preservation 7%

Table 3. Preferred species for intensified homegarden cultivation

Botanical name Xhosa name Frequency (n=14)

Silene undulata Unozitholana 8
Haemanthus albiflos Umathunga 7
Siphonochilus aethiopicus Isiphephetho 6
Hypoxis hemerocallidea Inongwe 5
Bulbine latifolia Irooiwater 4
Alepidea amatymbica Iqwili 4
Eucomis autumnalis Inguduza 4
Crassula vaginata Uphuncuka 3
Bowiea volubilis Umagaqana 3
Dioscorea sylvatica Uskolpathi 2
Warburgia salutaris Isibara 2
Rubia petiolaris Impendulo 2
Drimia elata Umrateni 2

species were selected on the basis of criteria such as high demand and financial
value, and cultural restrictions played only a role with respect to a few specific
species (e.g., Cassipourea flanaganii is not liked for cultivation as it is believed to
attract lightning). In addition, availability of propagation material, ease of
cultivation and drought resistance played a role, while hardly mention was made to
the need to conserve rare or endangered species. A comparison between the species
54 K.F. WIERSUM ET AL.

preferred for cultivation by local people with a list of 34 prioritized species for
conservation (Dold and Cocks 2002) indicated that only 50% of these 34 species
were considered important for cultivation.
However, the cultivation trials were not uniformly successful. As reported also in
other South-African studies (Crouch and Edwards 2004) local cultivation is hindered
by several technical constraints, most notably lack of water for irrigation, but also
difficulties with propagation and lack of experience with proper cultivation
requirements with respect to soil and light conditions. Notwithstanding the fact that
women hawkers are used to dealing with amayeza, they often buy part of the stock
from local collectors rather than collecting all plants themselves or having them
collected by their family members. Consequently, they have only limited knowledge
of natural growing conditions of most amayeza. Moreover, as the existing
cultivation practices are often carried out in a rather secluded manner, there is little
exchange of information amongst cultivators. Finally, there is a trade-off between
time spent in trade and in cultivation. In such cases other household members
including husbands or children have a major role to play in cultivation.

CONCLUSIONS
At present increasing attention is given to the stimulation of medicinal plant
cultivation as a means to combine biodiversity conservation and poverty alleviation.
As indicated by our case study, in order to link in domo conservation of medicinal
plants effectively with poverty alleviation, several aspects merit careful attention,
starting with a clear conceptualization of the notion of poverty alleviation. This
notion can be interpreted as relating to an increase in income and employment as
well as to an increase in human capital and dignity. Considering the role of
medicinal plant cultivation in contributing to increased income and employment of
poor people, the study has been ongoing for a too limited period to present clear
results on income effects.
The study indicated various factors that need attention when planning the linking
of biodiversity conservation with increased income generation. It is essential to give
careful attention to the selection of specific target groups and assessment of their
livelihood conditions, and to identify how cultivation practices can be adjusted to
these livelihood conditions. In our project perhaps the selection of the target group
was not optimal. The women hawkers spend most of their time at the market rather
than at home, and thus cultivation competes with their trading activities. Moreover,
in contrast to initial assumptions, they were not all collecting the traded medicinal
plants themselves. Further cultivation trials should focus stronger on the primary
amayeza collectors.
It is also important to recognize that medicinal plant cultivation as a means for in
domo conservation by local people is not just based on local awareness of the loss of
wild species, but rather on awareness to optimize income from medicinal plants.
Consequently, stimulation of cultivation as a means to combine biodiversity
conservation and poverty alleviation should not be primarily focused on national
concerns regarding endangered species, but rather on local concerns regarding
 CULTIVATION OF MEDICINAL PLANTS 55

economically attractive use of biodiversity. However, these two categories are not
mutually exclusive. Moreover, it should be recognized that efforts to stimulate in
domo conservation are often frustrated by locally perceived limitations in livelihood
activities due to efforts at in situ conservation. Stimulation of in domo conservation
by local people should not be seen as a compensation of loss afflicted by state-
controlled in situ conservation schemes, but rather as a compliment to local
participation in in situ conservation. The stimulation of cultivation should become
part of participatory forest management programmes.
Considering increasing human capital and dignity as important elements of
poverty alleviation, our data indicate that medicinal plants may play a significant
role in the maintenance of cultural identity. Biodiversity loss does not only entail a
loss in biological resources, but may also involve a loss of cultural practices. The
cultural value attributed to medicinal plants could be used as an argument to support
the conservation of biodiversity. However, such cultural values are not necessarily
identical for wild and cultivated plants, and it is important to distinguish between
cultural aspects concerning the use of the plants and cultural values regarding their
cultivation. Moreover, the cultural values should not be perceived as being static
(Cocks 2006). Our data demonstrate that as a consequence of the continued cultural
use of medicinal plants by people who have migrated from their rural villages to
(peri)urban areas, the trade in medicinal plants has increased. Local people have
already responded by initial cultivation practices. Although some studies have
indicated that African people in South Africa traditionally believe that cultivated
medicinal plants ‘lose power’ (Prins 1996), this belief was not found to be strong in
the study area and mostly concerned the use of amayeza for traditional ceremonies.
Apparently the beliefs concerning cultural uses of the medicinal plants were more
enduring than the traditional beliefs concerning their cultivation. The sustained
belief in cultural use practices, also under non-traditional conditions, has resulted in
an increase in commercial demands and a subsequent increased interest in
cultivation.
Finally, this study shows that one should not be too optimistic about the scope of
medicinal plant cultivation by poor people as a practical strategy for ín domo
conservation of threatened species. In the first place, preferred species for
cultivation are not necessarily the most threatened species. In the second place, it is
not clear whether such cultivation substitutes the collection of wild species or
supplements it. This does not mean, however, that cultivation efforts should be
disregarded as a conservation strategy. Rather than judging the impact of cultivation
on its direct impact on conserving threatened species, its scope should be considered
within a more general context of protecting and strengthening the cultural values of
biodiversity and thus creating a positive attitude towards biodiversity conservation
in general.

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
We gratefully thank Michel Postma, Jamie Pote, Nomtunzi Sizane, Mzwandile
Gatya and Sibusiso Madikizela for their contributions to field data collection. The
56 K.F. WIERSUM ET AL.

research was funded by the Netherlands – South-African Programme on Alternatives

in Development (SANPAD).

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