The use of scientific and indigenous knowledge in agricultural land evaluation and soil fertility studies of two villages in KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa

Natal Buthelezi, J. C. Hughes, Albert Thembinkosi Modi · 2010

Summary. Researchers compared indigenous soil knowledge from 59 small-scale farming households in KwaZulu-Natal with scientific land evaluation methods. Farmers classified soils primarily by color and texture, assessed land suitability mainly through slope position, and evaluated fertility using multiple indicators including crop yield, vegetation, and soil organisms. Farmers' assessments proved more holistic than scientific approaches, yet showed strong correlation with scientific evaluations, demonstrating that indigenous and scientific knowledge systems align on soil management.

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@article{buthelezi-2010-use-scientific-indigenous-knowledge-agricultural,
  title   = {The use of scientific and indigenous knowledge in agricultural land evaluation and soil fertility studies of two villages in KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa},
  author  = {Natal Buthelezi and J. C. Hughes and Albert Thembinkosi Modi},
  year    = {2010},
  doi     = {10.5897/ajar11.1108},
  url     = {https://doi.org/10.5897/ajar11.1108}
}

TY  - JOUR
TI  - The use of scientific and indigenous knowledge in agricultural land evaluation and soil fertility studies of two villages in KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa
AU  - Natal Buthelezi
AU  - J. C. Hughes
AU  - Albert Thembinkosi Modi
PY  - 2010
DO  - 10.5897/ajar11.1108
UR  - https://doi.org/10.5897/ajar11.1108
ER  - 

Details

DOI

10.5897/ajar11.1108

Countries

South Africa

Regions

Africa

Categories

food-systems, indigenous-innovation, regional-innovation-systems

Added

2026-04-28