Conversion of traditional village gardens and new economic strategies of rural households in the area of Bogor, Indonesia

Multistoried village gardens in the vicinity of Bogor, West Java, Indonesia, have long been essential multipurpose production systems for low-income households. However, they are being subjected to important conversion processes linked to socioeconomic changes presently found in overcrowded semi-urban zones. Determining factors in their development are a high population increase and the rise of a market economy. Some gardens tend to specialize in commercial growing of fruits or of export crops, others are colonized by houses and associated home gardens. Traditional gardens gradually lose their earlier ecological and economic features but also become a major asset for the modernization of village economy and society. In addition they bring socio-professional changes to villagers and play a determining role in the search for a new balance in the relations between cities and villages.