This ethnobotanical study was conducted on useful plants in and around GATE UDUMArn(traditional Gedeo homegardens) at Kochere Wereda of Gedeo Zone in South Ethiopia. It wasrnaimed at documenting traditional ethnobotanical knowledge on use and management of plants inrnthe culture of Gedeo people of the area. Data were collected using semi-structured interviews,rnfree listing methods, guided garden tours, group discussions, preference rankings, pairedrncomparisons and ranking using index of cultural significance (ICS). Totally, 165 plant species inrn135 genera and 65 families were collected and identified as useful plants to the people of thernWereda from homegardens and the immediate surroundings. Useful plants recorded fromrnhomegardens were 45% herbaceous, 31% trees, 18% shrubs and 6% climbers. Fabaceae was thernmost represented family on use with 16 (9.6%) species, followed by Poaceae 11 (6.6%),rnAsteraceae 10 (6.0%), Lamiaceae 9 (5.4%) and Solanaceae 8 (4.8%) species. Cultivated plantsrnmake 92 species (56%) of which 54 (33% of the total) are edibles. The rest 73 species (44%) ofrnthe total are wild or semi-wild useful plants managed in and around homegardens that arerntolerated, encouraged or deliberately planted. Among the total, 68 species (41%) were grouped asrnedibles, while 32 (19%) were medicinal plants. In addition, 34 (21%) species were ornamentalrnand 40 (24%) species were used in the material culture of the Gedeo people. Moreover, therernwere 29 species (18%) in the forage plant category, 26 (16%) in live fences; 19 (12%) used asrnfire wood and 37 (22%) are miscellaneously used species. Multipurpose species encounteredrnwere added to 43 that are 26% of the total. Woody species were found the integral components ofrnGedeo homegardens and 81 species (49%) of the total were found trees and shrubs managed inrnand around homegardens for various purposes. Community matrix ranking and analysis of indexrnof cultural significance showed that Syzygium guineense, Cordia africana and Albizia gummiferarnas the most culturally important plants in the category of multipurpose species. These resultsrnindicate that they are more vulnerable to exhaustion and hence they are at the highest rank ofrnconservation priority. Similarly, Ensete ventricosum, Zea mays and Brassica carinata were foundrnimportant food crops while Coffea arabica followed by Catha edulis were important cash cropsrnof the Wereda. Considering threats to useful plants, cutting woody species for firewood, forrnconstruction and various crop diseases were found as the major threat factors for garden species.rnGedeos practice agroforestry development, homegardening or field cropping to conserve andrnsustainably use agrobiodiversty of the area. Maintaining diverse specie of crops and landracesrnthrough selection, spatial and temporal crop arrangements and crop protection practices werernfound the basic garden management practices. Agroforestry is a traditional management practice of agroecosystems in the area and homegardens were found to be differentiable from thesernsystems in species and use diversities, fertility of soils and closeness to the dwellings. Therefore,rnsuch type of complimentary of in-situ and ex-situ conservation and agrobiodiversity managementrnpractices should be encouraged and strengthened by all stakeholders concerned. This researchrnwork ends in concluding about the important findings and forwarding importantrnrecommendations on conservation and sustainable use of homegarden components andrnethnobotanical knowledge in the area.rnKey words: Ethnobotany, GATE UDUMA/Homegarden, Kochere Wereda, Gedeo Zone,rnUseful plants