farmers have used these resources to provide
irrigation. After the improvement of natural
resources in the landscape, such as vegetation
and water, environmentally friendly interventions, such as apiculture (bee production), are
commonly practiced on exclosures and homesteads by farmers and youths to improve their
livelihoods. Meaza (2015) and Kerse (2017)
reported that income from honey production
increased by 300% over three years and incomes
from vegetables and spice production have also
tripled under watershed management in the
Tigray watersheds. The increment in the availability of biomass of grass and trees such as
elephant grass, Sesbania (Sesbania sesban) and
Leucaena (Leucaena leucocephala) on the edge
of a gully and marginalized land have encouraged farmers to adopt zero grazing while
Fig. 4 a Farmers’ participation in an experience sharing
event about field trials during field tour day, b Improvement in crop diversification (rainfed and irrigation) and
c Improvement in livestock diversification in watersheds
in the Tigray region. (Source Photos by 1st author, 2012)
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G. B. Tesfahunegn and E. T. Ayuk