FOREST GARDENING
The crops which are produced will often include fruits, nuts, edible leaves, spices, medicinal plant products, poles, fibers for tying, basketry materials, honey, fuelwood, fodder, mulches, game, sap products. Forest gardens (often called home gardens) have been used for millennia in tropical regions, where they still often form a major part of the food producing systems which people rely on, even if they work elsewhere for much of the time. They may also provide useful sources of extra income. Their use is intimately linked with prevailing socio-economic conditions. They are usually small in area, often 0.25-2.5 acres.in tropical regions like Kerala hills, the strong light conditions allow even understory layers to receive substantial light
There are plenty of plant crops which tolerate shady conditions, but many are not well known. Many of the more common shrub or perennial crops need bright conditions, and it may be necessary to design in more open clearings or glades for such species.
