Práticas agrícolas e etnoecologia: o cultivo da mandioca no município de Fonte Boa, Amazonas

Abstract

Family farming plays a fundamental role in the conservation of Amazonian agrobiodiversity, the promotion of food security, and the preservation of traditional knowledge related to the management of natural resources. Among the activities developed by these communities, cassava (Manihot esculenta Crantz) cultivation stands out as an important basis for subsistence, income generation, and the sociocultural reproduction of rural communities in the Amazon. In this context, this dissertation aimed to analyze the traditional cassava cultivation system in the municipality of Fonte Boa, Amazonas, Brazil, considering the socioeconomic, productive, environmental, and ethnoecological aspects associated with local family farmers. The research adopted a mixed-methods approach and was conducted with ten family farmers from the São Francisco I neighborhood, selected through purposive sampling and the snowball sampling technique. Data were collected through semi-structured interviews and guided field walks conducted on the farms. Qualitative data were analyzed using content analysis, whereas quantitative data were analyzed using descriptive statistics. The results showed that the local agricultural system is sustained by traditional management practices that contribute to the maintenance of cassava ethnovariety diversity and the organization of family farming units. The exchange of cassava stem cuttings (manivas), management strategies for cultivation areas, landscape interpretation, and the recognition of environmental indicators were identified as key components of the local agricultural system. Farmers also reported perceiving environmental and climate changes, particularly those related to rainfall patterns, dry-season periods, and the occurrence of extreme weather events, drawing upon traditional knowledge to interpret these changes and adopt adaptation strategies aimed at ensuring the continuity of agricultural production. It is concluded that traditional knowledge plays a fundamental role in the organization and maintenance of the cassava cultivation system, contributing to the conservation of agrobiodiversity, the development of local adaptive responses to environmental and climate change, and the strengthening of family farming in the Amazon.