Conservation and cardamom cultivation in nature reserve buffer zones in the East Usambara Mountains, Tanzania

Forest destruction continues to be a major threat to the unique biological diversity of the East Usambara Mountains in Northeast Tanzania. One of the most serious current pressures comes from the widespread cultivation of cardamom (Elettaria cardamomum) and other spices under the diminishing forest canopy. In this research, we studied the cultivation methods of cardamom farmers in the buffer zone of Amani Nature Reserve and the proposed Derema Wildlife Corridor, the importance of cardamom for income generation, and farmers' responses to expanding conservation activities, with the aim of proposing locally appropriate solutions based on these practices. Interviews, questionnaires, field experiments, and farm visits were used in data collection. Our results suggest that sustainable cultivation of cardamom is possible, and that some farmers have already adopted ecologically sound intensification practices in home gardens using agroforestry systems. However, some factors hinder broader adoption of such practices-including a history of poor planning, a lack of social capital, and the lack of government assistance and extension for small-scale agribusiness. We conclude that the East Usambaras can continue to be one of the principal cultivation regions for this important income-generating crop, if measures are taken to organize farmers to fulfill both their own needs and the requirements of forest conservation. © Taylor & Francis Group, LLC.