Session: Underexploited wild food plants have a high potential to contribute to nutritional and/or medicinal healthy while generating income and sustaining the environment. Grouping of these species, whether occurring naturally or by design, become low maintenance, naturalized 'Wild Gardens.' By incorporating a suite of these wild food plants into marginal land, fencerows, vacant plots, or the homestead, this technique of "farming the messy fringe" serves to maximize the land's use- an important consideration as many resource-poor women farmers have limited space. Once established, Wild Gardens require very little management, thus addressing the feminization of smallholder farming in many parts of the world where outmigration is an issue. This presentation will address recent research to characterize and leverage this overlooked food production system.
Presenter: Rick Bates