A Review on the Advantages of Home Garden for Khmer People in Rural Areas of Cambodia

Homesteading, also known as home gardens, is a long-standing food production practice worldwide. It involves cultivating vegetables around the home, with some families growing multiple varieties without proper management. The aim of this study is to express how important of home garden is for individual Khmer families and livelihood in Rural areas of Cambodia. Home gardens therefore feature species that are complementary to one another and are characterized by cheap capital input and basic technology. They can improve the variety of foods in a home, provide fresh vegetables, save money by not buying vegetables, and increase income by selling extra vegetables to neighbors and friends. This income can be used to pay for other foods, school fees, and other expenses. Gardening also helps families exercise and stay fit, diversifying their diet, and reducing daily expenses. It also provides livelihood opportunities for resource-poor families and delivers various ecosystem services. In conclusion, working in the garden encourages family exercise and fitness, raising the diet's level of diversity even more, lower daily costs, such as providing resource-poor families with a means of subsistence, and provide several ecosystem services.


INTRODUCTION
One of the oldest methods of producing food is in one's own backyard, and it is a widespread practice all throughout the world.Home garden, nutrition garden, show garden, kitchen garden, family garden, door yard garden, and back yard garden are some more names for this.Every one of these gardens serves the same fundamental purpose.Activities related to home gardening have been divided into two groups by Marsh and others: conventional and promoted.Home gardening is a common practice in many Asian nations (Helen Keller International/Cambodia, 2003).For Cambodians, growing vegetables in and around the house is a thing of the past.In rural locations, most homes produce some veggies in close proximity to the house.While some families cultivate numerous types with adequate management, others grow just a few gourd-type vegetables throughout a given season.Additionally, some families raise veggies for the market, although this is typically done in season.It is critical to understand the many kinds of gardening.One of the primary crop kinds in urban agricultural program farming is home gardening, sometimes referred to as backyard or kitchen gardening.It covers a range of techniques for cultivating crops on balconies, backyards, empty places, and any type of small garden (Mugisa et al., 2016).Vegetables, fruits, vines, medicinal plants, floral perennials, and trees abound in traditional home gardens.Herbs and annuals can be planted even along path edges (Bill, 1996).Since they can keep an eye on the number of traditional pesticides and chemicals being used on their food, a lot of people choose to cultivate their own produce.However, some people carry on with their gardening practices since that is what they and previous generations have always done (Fontenot et al., 2014).Throughout the growing season, planting a vegetable garden can provide an abundance of fresh, healthful veggies for you, your family, and your neighborhood.When done correctly, gardening may preserve natural resources, safeguard water quality, and enhance the appearance of your landscape.By increasing soil richness through crop rotation and converting waste materials into useful compost and fertilizer, environmentally friendly gardening techniques will reduce the number of fertilizers you need to buy (WSU, 2013).
The aim of this study is to express how important of home garden is for individual Khmer families and livelihood in Rural areas of Cambodia.Additionally, this approach can help reduce daily expenses such as income and livelihood opportunities for resource-poor families and deliver a number of ecosystem services.

LITERATURE REVIEW Definition of Home Garden
The home garden is a small-scale production system that provides consumable and practical goods that are either hard to come by, too expensive, or not easily accessible in retail marketplaces.Household gardens are typically situated adjacent to homes for reasons of security, convenience, and particular maintenance.They live on marginal land used for field produce and use marginal labor for significant household economic activity.Household gardens are characterized by simple technology and cheap capital input, with a variety of environmentally appropriate and complimentary species.In general, home gardening is the practice of cultivating a small plot of land that is either in the immediate vicinity of the family home or can be reached on foot from it (Galhena et al., 2013).

Herb garden
The most fundamental kind of home garden is a herb garden.It's a garden where herbs are grown.These are the plants that are mostly utilized in cooking for flavor and fragrance.However, some have therapeutic uses as well.Herbs such as parsley, oregano, basil, mint, and rosemary.Once planted, herb gardens usually require little maintenance.When they are ready to be harvested, they are usually grown in tiny boxes or pots before being moved into the ground.Herb gardens are planted with plants that have therapeutic qualities (Housing News Desk, 2023).

Kitchen Garden
The kitchen garden, with its ornamental plants and grassy stretches, is set apart from the remainder of the backyard.It can be utilized as a location for the cooperative cultivation of fruits, vegetables, herbs, and other plants.Based on the vegetables and herbs you use most frequently in your own cooking, a personal kitchen garden should be established.To make the most of the available space, utilize climbers and containers.The ideal places for your kitchen garden are those that receive enough of sunlight, are near water sources, and are adjacent to the kitchen (Housing News Desk, 2023).a space where fruits, flowers, herbs, and vegetables are all grown together.It is imperative to select vegetables and herbs that you often use in your own cooking while creating a personal kitchen garden.Climbers and containers can both be used in small places.The kitchen garden should always be created next to your kitchen, in a sunny area, and beside a water source (TNN, 2017).

Container Garden
Container gardening is a micro-farming approach in which a household or family grows fruits and vegetables for personal consumption in designated containers in an effort to enhance the well-being, health, and income of its members (Deveza et al., 2002).Producing vegetables in containers around the home is considered the most viable and easy way as compared to other options available in terms of cost and installation including repair and maintenance that can be adopted by families to improve their nutritional needs (Kaur et al., 2022).

Tips for Preparing a Home Garden
It is crucial to know that weeds compete with intended plants for soil moisture, sunlight, and nutrients, therefore get rid of them before planting.Selecting which vegetables to cultivate is among your first priorities.Grow vegetables that yield a good amount of nutrient-dense food in exchange for the time and space they need to grow.

Soil Preparation
Soil can be divided into multiple plots, each of which can have a tiny bed constructed, depending on the area of the land.Keep one bed set aside for growing seedlings.The best method of plowing the soil depends on the type of vegetable and seed size.For smaller seeds, such as mustard green or amaranth, the soil needs to be finely ground.It is best to make pits for gourd-type veggies like pumpkin and wax gourd.If the area you have to mow is big, you can either hire a sod cutter or use a suitable herbicide to kill the turf.Only work when the proper conditions for soil moisture are met (Freeborn et al., 2015).

Fertilization
An additional crucial element for effective vegetable cultivation is proper fertilizing.The type of soil and the crops you are producing will determine how much fertilizer you require (Cotner et al., 2009).

METHODOLOGY
This review employs a qualitative methodology to gather data from numerous published journal articles, the journal website, and the book all together on the desk.Secondary data is used as both a qualitative and quantitative analysis tool.

RESULTS AND DISCUSSION Shifting Diets and Saving Some Money
Numerous non-target households purchased vegetables from Village Model Farms (VMFs) and target households, often at a lower cost than they could have paid at the market.Some people received free vegetables after asking for them or being given them.In general, they believed that the program's introduction had enhanced the quantity and quality of vegetables and fish available in their villages (Keats et al., 2018).

Improved Incomes
The majority of participating households that were surveyed said that the project has increased their income through a few different channels.Initially, by growing and eating their own food, participating households reduce their expenses at the market and save money on seeds that the project has given them for free or on chemicals because they are using chemical-free farming methods like organic composting and intercropping for integrated pest management.Second, straight sales revenue, which may be helped by growing vegetable prices, which have allegedly gone up in most villages by two to three times in the previous five years, depending on the type.Productivity and output gains are also important.Home gardeners in one hamlet said they used to grow solely for their own consumption, but now they sell around half of the vegetables they grow (Keats et al., 2018).

Capacity and Behavior Change
According to non-participating households surveyed in intervention areas, fish and vegetables were now easier to get their hands on.Additionally, VHVs believed that a wider range of community members than just their target farmers were taking in and acting upon their messages about nutrition, hygiene, sanitation, and health (Keats et al., 2018).

Food & Nutrition Security
In sum, this project's actions and outcomes have significantly increased the target population's food and nutrition security.Increases in the consumption of fish and vegetables, as well as improved child rearing practices, are anticipated to boost nutrient absorption, as are advancements in water, sanitation, and hygiene brought about by behavior change communication (Keats et al., 2018).

CONCLUSION
Actually, after practice, a home garden.It can improve the variety of foods in your home.availability of fresh vegetables most of the time.Saves you money because you will not be buying vegetables.Increases your income when you sell extra vegetables to your neighbors and friends in your community.Income gained from selling vegetables can be used to pay for food other foods that you are not able to produce, pay school fees for your children, and other expenses.Income from vegetable sales gives women a chance to contribute towards household expenses.Working in the garden together encourages family fitness and exercise, raising the diet's level of diversity even more, lower daily costs, such as providing resource-poor families with a means of subsistence, and provide several ecosystem services.

FUTHER STUDY
This research still has limitations so it is necessary to carry out further research on the topic "A Review on the Advantages of Home Garden for Khmer People in Rural Areas of Cambodia."