ABSTRACT
Thegenerallocationsofvarioustypesofforestgardensthroughoutthe tropicalworldarebecomingreasonablywellknown,duepartlytothe 1982-1987AgroforestrySystemsInventoryofallformsofagroforestry includingforestgardens(theredesignated'homegardens')compiledby theInternationalCouncilforResearchinAgroforestry(ICRAF,Nairobi). Butfewofthesesystemshavebeendescribed,feweranalyzedindepth,and intheabsenceofinterestbyagriculturaleconomistsapparentlynonehave beenquantifiedasholisticintegratedman-plant-animalagroecosystems. Consequentlyonemustgleancrumbsofknowledgeaboutthemfromthe tablesofotherdisciplines-forestry,horticulture,anthropology,botany, ethnobotany.ThisagroecosystemhasreceivedmostattentioninSouth India,SriLanka,WestJava,Nigeria,CentralAmerica,partsofAmazonia; butlittleornothinghasbeenreportedfromOuterIndonesia,Vietnam, Laos,Madagascar,Philippines,Melanesia,Malaysia,Bhutan,SouthChina, Myanmar,exceptthatforestgardensthereexistinvariousformsandarea traditionalagroecosystem.
