Pekarangan (Indonesian pronunciation:[pə'karaŋan]) is a type of tropicalhome garden developed inIndonesia, mainly inJava. In addition to plants,pekarangans may contain animals (includingfarmed fish,ruminants,poultry, andwild animals) and structures such as pens and bird cages. The gardens provide food, income, andornamental plants, while also supportingsocial interaction,food sharing,cultural ceremonies, andreligious practices. Somepekarangans are made, maintained, and spatially arranged according to local values. The first mention ofpekarangan is found in aJavanese chronicle that was written in 860 AD. In 2010, around 103,000 square kilometers (40,000 sq mi) of Indonesian land were used for gardens of this sort.
Thesustainability and social roles ofpekarangans have been threatened bycommercialization of its crops, massurbanization, andland fragmentation. These factors led to a loss ofplant diversity within the gardens, which consequently reduce the gardens' sustainability. The reduced sustainability of the gardens play a part in causing problems such aspest outbreaks and a rise inhousehold debts.
Throughout the history of Java,pekarangans have been of little interest to its rulers that have ruled the island due to their minimal susceptibility to agriculturaltax-in-kind. In the 2010s, they have gained the attention of theIndonesian government through P2KP (Percepatan Penganekaragaman Konsumsi Pangan), a program focused onurban andperi-urban areas that aims to optimize production with a sustainable approach.
InIndonesian,pekarangan can be translated as "land that surrounds a house", "a house's yard", or "plotted land for house construction".[1] However, the term is widely used inscientific literature, specifically inagroforestry and environmental topics, to mean "home gardens".[2] The wordpekarangan may be derived fromkarang, which means "perennial crops".[3]
Scholars offer various definitions of the term "pekarangan". According to Sajogyo, it is a plot adjacent to a house, cultivated on a part-time basis. Totok Mardikanto and Sri Sutami define it as a plot surrounding a house; most of its kind are fenced, and usually planted with dense plants with various annual and perennial plants for daily and commercial use. Euis Novitasari considers "pekarangan" to be a form of land use: a system of small-scale additional food production by members and a family, that is also anecosystem with a densely layered canopy. Further, she describes it as having a clear boundary and containing elements such as the owner's house, a kitchen, a pen, and fences. Simatupang and Suryana argue that it is hard to define "pekarangan" clearly, since its role can vary as a form of farmland to a homestead plot.[3] Rahu et al. interpret"pekarangan" as, specifically, a Javanese home garden.[4]
Apekarangan generally consists ofannual andperennial plants combined; they can be harvested daily or seasonally.[6] Some perennials offer harvests all year round, includingmelinjo (Gnetum gnemon) for its edible leaves, and others such ascoconut,jackfruit,banana, andsalak for their fruits.[7][8] Other perennials' fruiting periods are limited: for example, thesemarangguava (Syzygium aqueum) fruits from April to June, mangoes fruit during July and August, anddurians (Durio zibethinus) from June to September.[7] Perennials are more common than annuals inpekarangans throughout regions where rice fields account for more than 40 percent of land area; elsewhere the situation is reversed, and annuals are more common, though if labor is in short supply, perennials are again favored.[9] Trees are one of the most common components of home gardens, contributing to the image ofIndonesian countryside with houses less visible than the "dense, forest mimics" ofpekarangans.[10]
InSundanesepekarangans, ornamental plants tend to be placed in front of the house, while crops such ascloves,oranges, andmangoes are frequently planted in the front yard for the homeowners to see.Starchy crops,medicinal plants, andcash crops are more frequent in the front and back plots, and less in the side plots.Coffee plants might be used as ahedge in the side and back yards; ornamental plants might have a similar function in front yards. Vegetables are habitually grown in front and side areas to be exposed to light, as tall trees are rare in those areas. Trees with large canopies might be planted in front yards, providing shade for children. Coconuts, fruit trees, and tall trees whose woods are used for construction are planted in back gardens to avoid damage to the house when any of them falls due to a storm. Most plants propagate without intentional human intervention—this natural process is calledjanteun ku anjeun in Sundanese—due toseed scattering by birds, mammals, or humans after they eat. Because of this, no clear spatial arrangement is found in Sundanese back gardens.[11]
Plants in Javanese and Sundanesepekarangans—especially annual plants grown in the dry season (e.g.eggplants)—are habitually grown near water sources such as fish ponds, open sewage ditches, and wells.[7][11] Plants that need high levels of nutrients, such as banana, mango, jackfruit, and other fruit plants, are planted close to garbage dumps.[11] Meanwhile, crops frequently harvested for cooking, such aschili peppers,lengkuas,lemongrass, andtomatoes, are planted near the kitchen.[11][12]
Pekarangans inBorneo contain fewerexotic species thanpekarangans in other regions of Indonesia. Many of their plants are native to Borneo. Among the plants in Borneanpekarangans that are considered economically and ecologically crucial are durians (Durio zibethinus,Durio kutejensis), jackfruits (Artocarpus heterophyllus),langsat (Lansium domesticum), andrambutan (Nephelium lappaceum).[13]
Some owners ofpekarangans keep livestock and poultry (traditionally chickens, goats, andsheep), in a household pen. Animals are often allowed to roam around the gardens, village areas, and traditional markets to find food on their own. They are penned at night and are usually given additional feed. Other common domestic animals kept inpekarangans are fishes in ponds andsongbirds (e.g.zebra dove,Geopelia striata), which are kept in cages onbamboo poles. The economic status ofpekarangan owners plays a role in livestock ownership; lower-class owners tend to own several chickens whereas middle-class owners might have a goat or a sheep, and wealthier owners may own several cows orwater buffaloes. Livestock manure acts as an organic fertilizer for the gardens viacomposting, and sometimes a nutritional source for pond fishes.[14][15]
Productive fish ponds are common in Sundanese traditionalpekarangans.[14] The fishes are fed withkitchen waste supplemented by human and animal waste, coming from toilets and horse stables above these types of ponds. However, pens for other animals are not built above the ponds, and their waste iscomposted instead.[15]
The gardens may have a high diversity ofsoil fauna. According to Widyastuti, the soil fauna diversity in the gardens is suggested to be higher than that ofteak forests.[16] The diversity might be caused by the vegetation, which protects soil fauna from direct sunshine, especially in the dry season.[17]Otto Soemarwoto andGordon Conway wrote that the gardens are also believed to be "a good habitat" forreptiles andamphibians.[18]
Researchers found opposing findings on the conservation of wild birds inpekarangans. A high diversity of birds, including legally protected species, within the gardens were recorded in a West Java research while another study inJambi suggests individualpekarangans are not effective as a means to conserve bird communities. This is because of theedge effects of their irregular shapes, their frequent disturbance, and their proximity to roads and houses. Thepekarangans used for the Jambi study had unusually low levels of plant diversity, which may account for the results. Despite this, the gardens apparently still attract birds due to their food resources.[18][19]
Plant diversity inpekarangans arises from complex interactions between several factors that are not fully understood.[20] These include environmental stability, thetropical climate that is favorable to plant growth, and their close proximity to the owners' domestic activities.[21] Other natural factors are size, temperature decrease due to elevation,precipitation, and climatic events likeEl Niño.[22] Anthropological factors include individual preferences and market proximity.[23]
The diversity of plants aids individual plants to adapt to a changing environment, helping them survive in the long term.[24] The biodiversity in the multi-layered system also helps to optimize solar energy and carbon harvesting, cool the domestic climate, protect the soil from erosion, and accommodate habitats for wild plants and animals.[25][24] Thegenetic diversity also gives protection from the effects of pests and diseases.[26] As an example, the abundance ofinsectivorous birds in the gardens helps control pests,[27] helping the garden remain productive.[24]
While on per individual basispekarangans store only small amounts of carbon due to their size, on per area basis they hold an amount of carbon that is similar to primary or secondary forests, and greatly surpassingImperata grasslands andfallow lands.[28]
Plant diversity inpekarangans tends to increase as their size increases.[29] Diversity of crop species, however, might reach a plateau in very large gardens. Largerpekarangans have a lower density of crop species because of more constant cultivation patterns.[30] Apekarangan smaller than 100 square meters (1,100 sq ft) is insufficient for plant diversity and crop production.[31] Some plant types, such as trees higher than 10 meters (33 ft),spice plants, andindustrial crops are almost completely absent in gardens of 100 square meters (1,100 sq ft) or less.[29] Home gardens in Java tend to be smaller; the majority of them are smaller than 200 square meters (2,200 sq ft), as suggested by a report from 2004. Meanwhile, similar gardens in other Indonesian islands tend to be larger. Their average size is estimated to be 2,500 square meters (27,000 sq ft); a few reach the size of 3 hectares (320,000 sq ft).[32]
Pekarangans at highaltitudes tend to have a smaller size, increased density of plants, and a smaller range of plant diversity. As altitude increases, temperature decreases, limiting plant diversity. Coconuts and fruit trees tend to develop better in lower-altitude pekarangans while vegetables tend to grow better at higher altitudes.[33][20]
Pekarangans with better access to water—either by climate or by proximity to water resources—are able to facilitate annual crop cultivation.[34] Those in West Java, when observed, perform better in accommodating plant diversity when the wet season occurs than in the dry season.[35] The climatic conditions of Java enable the consistent growth of annual plants in itspekarangans, even in parts ofEast Java where the climate is drier.[36]
Canopy in those gardens functions as a protection from intense raindrops. Most of their plants' heights are less than a meter, slowing down raindrops when they hit the soil.[26][12] Leaf litter also helps protecting the soil against erosion. The role of plant canopies in consistently producing organic litter is believed to be more important in reducing erosion than its direct speed-reducing effects on raindrops. Nevertheless, gardens are less effective than natural forests in erosion reduction.[37][12]
Harvesting of rice—the dominant staple of Indonesia—influences the use ofpekarangans in some ways. Production in the gardens decreases during rice-harvesting season but peaks during the rest of the year.[38] Lower-income villagers benefit from the consistent productivity of starch crops in the gardens, especially in a period of food shortage pre-rice harvest or after a failed rice harvest by drought.[7][39]
Settlement dynamics affectpekarangans in various ways. Expansion of settlements to new lands, caused by population growth, is the cause of the wide presence of food crops in newly madepekarangans.[40] People who resettled via theIndonesian transmigration program might support plant diversity in the gardens in the places they migrate to. Plant species brought by internal migrants need to adapt well to the local environment.[41]
Commercialization, fragmentation, and urbanization are major hazards topekarangans' plant diversity. These change the organic cycles within the gardens, threatening their ecological sustainability.[31] Commercialization requires a systemic change of crop planting. To optimize and produce more crops, apekarangan's owner must specialize in its crops, making a small number of crops dominate the garden. Some owners turn them intomonoculture gardens.[42] Fragmentation stems from the traditional system of inheritance.[31] Consequences from the reduction of plant diversity include the loss of canopy structures and organic litter, resulting in less protection of the gardens' soil; loss of pest-control agents, increasing the use of pesticides; loss of production stability; loss of nutrients' diversity; and the disappearance of food sharing culture.[43] Despite urbanization's negative effect in reducingpekarangans' plant diversity, it increases the diversity of the gardens'ornamental plants.[44]
A case study of home gardens inNapu Valley,Central Sulawesi, shows that the decrease in soil protection is caused by insufficient soil fertility management, regularweeding and waste burning, dumping waste in garbage pits instead of using it for compost, and spread of inorganic waste.[45] The decrease of soil fertility worsens the decrease of crop diversity in the gardens.[46]
Products frompekarangans have multiple uses; for example, a coconut tree can provide food, oil, fuel, and building materials, and also be used in rituals and ceremonies.[47] The gardens' plants are known for their products' nutritional benefits and diversity. While rice is low in vitaminsA andC, products from the gardens provide an abundance of such nutrition.Pekarangans with more perennial crops tend to create morecarbohydrates andproteins, and those with more annual plants tend to create more portions of vitamin A.[48][7]Pekarangans also act as a source of firewood and building materials.[47][49]
Lower-income families tend to consume moreleafy vegetables than wealthier families, due to their consistent availability and low price.[7] Low-income families also favor bigger use of fuel sources from the gardens.[47]Pekarangans in villages act assubsistence systems for families rather than an income source. In areas such as Gunung Kidul, food-producing uses of the gardens are more dominant than crop fields due to soil erosion in these regions.[47]
In urban and suburban areas, major fruit production centers, and tourist destination regions,pekarangans tend to act as an income generator. Income from the gardens is mostly from perennial crops.[14] Good market access stimulates the cultivation of commercial crops within the gardens.[46] Other factors that influence their economic significance are their area and the demand for a particular crop.[49]
According to a 1991 article, the poor cultivate subsistence plants in theirpekarangans with an emphasis on fruits and vegetables, while the rich tend to plant more ornamental plants and cash crops with higher economic value.[50] An article from 2006 also concludes that the importance of commercial plants increases with owners' wealth.[46] A study in Sriharjo,Yogyakarta Special Region, concludes that poorerpekarangan owners orient toward commercial uses while richer owners orient toward subsistence uses.[51]Ann Stoler argued that as a rural family acquire more area of rice field, garden use becomes less intense, up until the family-owned rice field reach around 2,000 square meters (22,000 sq ft), the minimal size typically needed to feed one family. Past this point, garden use starts to increase.[52]
Theburuan (Sundanese for "front yard"), part of a Sundanesepekarangan, is used as a children's playground and adults' gathering place.[34] Integrated with local customs and philosophies such asrukun andtri-hita-karana, the gardens aid other social interactions such as yield-sharing, ceremonies, and religious activities.[53][54] Especially in urban areas,pekarangans also function as aesthetic ornaments of a house, mainly the front yard.[34]
Pekarangans are mainly developed by women. Forms of such gardens in matriarchal tribes and societies, e.g.Minangkabau,Aceh, and communities in the 1960s Central Java, are more developed than in tribes that tend to be patriarchal, e.g.Batak. For the same reason, matriarchal culture around the gardens started to develop, such as the requirement for the permission of a landowner's wife before selling a plot of land they own—this happens in cities likeTegal.[55] A female-led household would orient their use of the gardens toward household needs.[46] InMadura, however, home gardens are described as the domain of men.[56] Nevertheless, apekarangan in general, regardless of the culture, is considered a responsibility of the entire family, including their offspring and the offspring's families.[57] The men prepare the land prior to home garden use, plant tree crops, and sell the garden's crops, while women plant annual crops.[58]
In a 2004 report, Javanesepekarangans are suggested to have higher net income-per-area than rice fields. The same report argued that the cost of the Javanese gardens' production is lower than that of rice fields.[59] People who focus on the gardens' production instead of rice fields may gain better yields than their counterparts.[60] Poor villagers, however, tend not to concentrate efforts toward the gardens; maintenance of the gardens as a sole income source would require the use of high-risk, high-reward crops, more intensive care, and income would be vulnerable to market fluctuations. Maintenance of diverse cash crops is more intense than that of rice fields and the intensity would make the villagers' gardening schedule less adaptable to rice farming activities.[61]
In some cases, people are allowed to build houses in thepekarangans of others in exchange for doing work for the land owners. The gardens, however, tend to have a low demand for labor, offering minimal labor opportunities.[62]
The philosophy of living harmoniously, referred to asrukun, is followed by the Javanese and Sundanese; offering yields frompekarangans to others is believed to be the medium of such culture. This can be done by offering its products to their neighbors, for example during events such as births, deaths, weddings, and cultural events like theJavanese new year and theMawlid (observance of the birthday ofMuhammad). Some offer their products to cure diseases or to protect owners from dangers. Their products are also given during daily life, especially in rural areas. A ruralpekarangan owner usually allows others to enter it for any practical reason: taking dead wood for fuel, pulling water from a well for their own use, or even taking its crops, though permission might be restricted or denied if the owner has only a limited yield for his or her own consumption. Requests to take products from the gardens for religious or medicinal purposes are rarely or never denied, but since some people believe asking permission to take medicinal plants in apekarangan is taboo, they may also be taken without explicit permission.[53]
Javanese culture interpreted the gardens aspepek ing karang—"a complete design".[21] It can also be interpreted aspepek teng karangan, which according to the anthropologist Oekan Abdoellah, is a way of thinking, indicating agricultural practices within the gardens are a consequence of thinking about the ways to use their produce and satisfy their needs from them.[63] The words within thepepek teng karangan phrase can also be translated individually:pepek means 'complete',teng means 'on', whilekarangan means 'idea'. This is similar to the Sundanese breakdown of the wordpekarangan: pe- is a prefix that means 'place',karang means 'idea', and the combination of these can be loosely translated as 'a place to create ideas'.[64] Javanese culture, however, takes offense at the gardens' comparison with forests due to the low social value of forest in the culture.Wayang puppet plays depict forests as "places where wild animals and evil spirits reign" and its clearing, which is done only by men who are believed to have spiritual powers, is viewed as a respectable deed.[10] The backyard of a Sundanese homestead is described assupados sungkur (to be unseen by others).[11]
Associations of plants in Javanesepekarangans tend to be more complex than those in Sundanesepekarangans. In Javanese gardens, owners also tend to cultivate medicinal plants (jamu) while the Sundanese tend to grow vegetables and ornamental plants.[18]
TheSundanese language has names for each part of apekarangan. The front yard is calledburuan, a space for a garden shed, ornamental plants, fruit trees, a children's playground, benches, and crop-drying. The side yard (pipir) is used for wood trees, crops, medicinal herbs, a fish pond, well, and a bathroom. The side yard is also a space for cloth-dying. The back yard (kebon) is used to cultivate vegetable plants, spice plants, an animal pent, and industrial plants.[65]
Balinesepekarangans are influenced by the philosophy oftri-hita-karana that divides spaces intoparahyangan (top, head, pure),pawongan (middle, body, neutral), andpalemahan (below, feet, impure). Theparahyangan area of a Balinesepekarangan facesMount Agung, which is regarded as a sacred place (prajan) to pray (sanggah). Plants with flowers and leaves that are regularly picked and used forBalinese Hinduism liturgical purposes are planted in theparahyangan area. Thepawongan area is planted with regular flowers, fruits, and leaves. Thepalemahan area is planted with fruits, stems, leaves, and tubers.[54] Balinese back yards, which are known in Tabanan and Karangasem asteba, are used as a place to cultivate crops and keep livestock for subsistence, commercial, and religious use as offerings.[66] The Balinese further developed beliefs about what plants should and should not be planted in various parts of theirpekarangans, following the teachings from theTaru Premana manuscript. As an example,nerium andbougainvillea are believed to emit positiveauras while planted in theparahyangan/sanggah area of apekarangan while negative auras are believed to appear if they are planted in front of thebale daja, a building specifically placed in the north part of a dwelling.[67][68]
Taneyan lanjhang ("long yard" inMadurese) is a system of housing and home garden inMadurese culture, shared by multiple households in a large family. Spatially,taneyan lanjhang is centered around the rectangle-shapedtaneyan ("yard" in Madurese), which is used for crop drying, traditional rituals, and family ceremonies.[69][70][71] Other elements oftaneyan lanjhang includeroma (house),kobung orlangghar (Islamic prayer room/musalla),dapor (kitchen),kandang (livestock cage), plant fences, a warehouse, a pair of well and water basin, and outdoor bathrooms.Kobung is notable for its multi-purpose characteristics. Alongside religious uses,kobung is used to receive guests and facilitate family discussions.Kobung is also used as a bedroom substitute forbachelor members of the family. The yard (taneyan) can also act as an extension ofkobung during large religious events. Given the religious uses ofkobung andtaneyan,taneyan lanjhang is often oriented to the direction ofMecca (qibla), which is perceived by the Madurese as "to the west".[71] The spatial composition oftaneyan lanjhang is laid out according to thebappa, babbhu, guru, rato (father, mother, teacher, leader) philosophy that shows the order of respected figures in Madurese culture.[69]
Food crops (especially fruits) are the most common plants found intaneyan lanjhang gardens. The gardens may have a higher number of species within the legume family (Fabaceae), ginger family (Zingiberaceae), gourd family (Cucurbitaceae), and citrus family (Rutaceae), compared to other plantfamilies. Among the gardens' most common plants are bananas, mangoes,maize,cassavas, and bamboos (specificallyBambusa glaucescens).[71]
Pekarangans are integrated intorumah gadang, the traditional house ofMinangkabau, with its own set of plant and hardscape arrangements. Portrayals ofpekarangan are found within Minangkabau literature, from cultural proverbs to the 1984 bookAlam Takambang Jadi Guru byAA Navis.[72]
Plants in such gardens can be generally divided into three categories. Medicinal and aromatic plants are not cultivated in one defined area; each species occupies its own designated plot. Some plants of this kind (such asAglaia odorata,Lawsonia inermis,Coleus scutellarioides, andKalanchoe laciniata) are planted at the sides ofrumah gadang entrance stairs. Others are planted elswhere:jasmines at the bottom of house windows,pomegranates andmagnolias in the front and/or back ofanjuang (rumah gadangwing rooms), andylang-ylangs on side yards. Ornamental plants (such asMurraya paniculata,Cordyline fruticosa, andcrotons) tend to be planted in all sides of therumah gadang compound in the style of multi-layered plant fences. Spices (such asCaryota mitis andElephantopus scaber) are planted in aparak (householdsmallholding).[73]
Plants within apekarangan rumah gadang are integral parts within Minangkabau customs and cultural wisdom. Crotons can be interpreted as a symbol of "talking manners," depicting the difference of communication between conjugal and extended family members. Aromatic plants such as jasmines are believed to "dispelsatan andjinns from a house".Lanjuang (C. fruticosa) leaves are traditionally used as a sign of invitation to attend a wedding reception or a funeral by placing alanjuang leaf on the invitee's house gate. Sugarcanes are utilized inmamanisi anak, a traditional rite to celebrate a newborn baby.[74]
Hardscapes that are normally present in thepekarangan rumah gadang includerangkiang (rice silo), ponds, and pens.[75][76] Randi Reimena of Haluanpadang.com, quoting writer Pinto Anugrah, wrote thatrangkiang is "an inseparable part ofrumah gadang; traditionally, arumah gadang withoutrangkiang is impossible".[77] Ponds are typically placed in any part of thepekarangan, and usually contain fishes such asnile tilapias,carps,catfishes, andmudfishes. Pens, generally made for chickens and ducks, are placed beside or behind therumah gadang.[76]
Pekarangans inLampung culture have their own elements; alongside plants are feet-washing places used before entering into a house's veranda (gakhang hadap[78]), a rice-storage room (walai[79]), an outdoor kitchenette or kitchen, a firewood-storage place, and livestock barn.[80] The front yard is calledtengahbah/terambah/beruan, the side yard iskebik/kakebik, and the back yard iskudan/juyu/kebon.[81]
Pekarangans of other ethnic groups in Indonesia have other names, includingpassiring andterampak benua inBuginese culture, as well astarampak andpa'palakan inTorajan culture.[64]Pekarangans are also integrated in local, community-level agroforestry systems, such askaleka inDayak households of Borneo.[4]
In the first establishment or formation of a village or new ground, the intended settlers take care to provide themselves with sufficient garden ground round their huts for stock and to supply the ordinary wants of their families. The produce of this plantation is the exclusive property of the peasant, and exempted from contribution or burden, and such is their number and extent in some regencies (as inKedú for instance), that they constitute perhaps a tenth part of the area of the whole district. The spot surrounding his simple habitation, the cottager considers his peculiar patrimony and cultivates with peculiar care. He labours to plant and rear in it those vegetables that may be most useful to his family and those shrubs and trees which may at once yield him their fruit and their shade; nor does he waste his efforts on a thankless soil. The cottages, or the assemblage of huts, that compose the village, become thus completely screened from the rays of a scorching sun, and are so buried amid the foliage of a luxuriant vegetation, that at a small distance no appearance of a human dwelling can be discovered, and the residence of a numerous society appears only a verdant grove or a clump of evergreens. Nothing can exceed the beauty or the interest, which such detached mass of verdure, scattered over the face of the country, and indicating each the abode of a collection of happy peasantry, add to scenery otherwise rich, whether viewed on the sides of the mountains, in the narrow vales, or in the extensive plains. — Stamford Raffles, The History of Java, 1817.[82]
Parts of the quote were also quoted byAnn Stoler inGarden Use and Household Economy in Rural Java, 1978[83]
| Distribution of pekarangan areas in Java | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Province | <100m2 | 100m2-200m2 | 200m2-300m2 | >300m2 |
| West Java-Banten | 52.29% | 25.00% | 8.77% | 8.95% |
| Central Java | 27.50% | 27.57% | 13.20% | 31.73% |
| East Java | 34.52% | 25.83% | 13.33% | 31.73% |
| Special Region of Yogyakarta | 33.51% | 17.48% | 14.61% | 34.40% |
| Source: Arifin, Kaswanto & Nakagoshi 2014[84] | ||||
By 1902,pekarangans occupied 378,000 hectares (1,460 sq mi) of land in Java, and the area increased to 1,417,000 hectares (5,470 sq mi) in 1937 and 1,612,568 hectares (6,226.16 sq mi) in 1986.[10] In 2000, they occupied about 1,736,000 hectares (6,700 sq mi).[85] Indonesia as a whole had 5,132,000 hectares (19,810 sq mi) of such gardens in 2000.[85] The number increased at about 10,300,000 hectares (40,000 sq mi) in 2010.[86] In 2021, the number reached an estimate of 14,300,000 hectares (55,000 sq mi).[87]
Soemarwoto and Conway stated that the first-known record of them is a Javanese charter from 860.[88] Central Java is considered thepekarangans' center of origin, according to Oekan Abdoellah et al.; the gardens later spread to East Java in the twelfth century.[6][89] During theDutch colonial era,pekarangans were referred to aserfcultuur.[90] In the eighteenth century, Javanesepekarangans had already so influenced West Java that they had partly replacedtalun (a local form of mixed gardens) there.[91] Sincepekarangans contain many species, which mature at different times throughout the year, it has been difficult for governments throughoutJavanese history to tax them systematically. In 1990, this difficulty caused the Indonesian government to forbid the reduction of rice fields in favor ofpekarangans. Such difficulty might have helped the gardens to become more complex over time. Despite that, past governments still tried to tax the gardens.[92]
Since the 1970s, Indonesia had observed economic growth rooted in the Indonesian government's five-year development plans (Repelita), which were launched in 1969. The economic growth helped increase the numbers of middle-class and upper-class families, resulting in better life and higher demand for quality products, including fruits and vegetables.Pekarangans in urban, suburban, and main fruit production areas adapted its efforts to increase their products' quality but this resulted in a reduction of biological diversity in the gardens, leading to an increased vulnerability to pests and plant diseases. Some disease outbreaks in commercialpekarangans occurred in the 1980s and the 1990s, such as thecitrus greening disease that damaged many mandarin orange trees and the spread of the pathogenic fungiPhyllosticta, which affected almost 20% of clove trees in West Java. This vulnerability also affected their owners' economic and social conditions; owners became more susceptible to debt, the sharing culture in traditional commercialpekarangans vanished, and the poor enjoyed fewer rights from them.[43]
The Indonesian government launched a campaign in October 1951, namelyKarang Kitri, which aimed to persuade communities to plant trees in their home gardens and other types of land. There was no incentive given in the campaign. The campaign ended in 1960.[93] Use ofpekarangans was included in a program by the Indonesian government in 1991 under a program calledDiversifikasi Pangan dan Gizi ("Food and Nutrition Diversification").[94]
Since the early 2010s, the government, through theMinistry of Agriculture, runs apekarangan development initiative namedPercepatan Penganekaragaman Konsumsi Pangan (P2KP, "Acceleration on Food Diversification") that is focused in urban and semi-urban areas. The program applies its agenda to a concept namedKawasan Rumah Pangan Lestari (KRPL; "Sustainable Food Houses Region"[95]).[96] P2KP was begun under the Indonesian Presidential Regulation No. 22 Year 2009. There is also an urban women-focused program namedGerakan Perempuan untuk Optimalisasi Pekarangan (GPOP; "Women's Movement for Pekarangan Optimization").[96]
In addition to the national programs, some regions of Indonesia have implemented their ownpekarangan use programs. The government of East Java launched a program calledRumah Hijau ("Green House") in 2010. The provincial government later collaborated with the Ministry of Agriculture to improve upon theRumah Hijau program based on KRPL prototypes in Pacitan, making a new program namedRumah Hijau Plus-Plus.[96]
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