Adoption of agroforestry technology: The case of live hedges in the central plateau of Burkina Faso

Off-season farming activities contribute significantly to household income in the central plateau of Burkina Faso. Cattle and small ruminants are also important. The lack of rules regulating animal browsing during the dry season, unlike during the rainy season, has created competition for available land resources among the components of the land use sub-system. This study describes traditional practices utilized to protect home gardens from animals, how these practices have evolved over rime and examines factors that affect the adoption of live hedges. Informal and formal surveys were undertaken in the study area in 1993. Five types of traditional method for protecting gardens from animals were identified. A legit model integrating technology, profitability as an explanatory variable was used to study farmers' decision processes to live hedges adoption. The results indicate that water availability and the profitability of the technology itself enhance the probability of adopting live hedges. The results provide an insight into conditions that should be taken into consideration when targeting farmers for this agroforestry technology. (C) 1997 Published by Elsevier Science Ltd.