Abstract

Montane homegardens are key socio-ecological systems for agricultural production and family consumption. Care and management lies mainly on the hands of women who developed diverse agricultural practices that they have learned and nurtured due to the transmission of local knowledge. With a mixed methodological approach, which included land property characterization, semi-structured interviews and focus groups, this work compiled and systematized the local wisdom, associated with knowledge, practices and beliefs, of mapuche-pewenche communities from southern Chile. We identified three categories of wisdom associated with the management of montane homegardens: i) control of pathogenic organisms, ii) fertility of the soil, and iii) design and stewardship of farm systems. This wisdom contributes to build a biocultural memory associated with homegardens that has endured over time and has been transmitted through generations. Recalling this memory allows maintaining the past alive, comprehend the present and sustainably shape the future of small-scale agriculture in ancestral Mapuche- Pewenche territory of the southern Andes.