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Introduction to Agroforesty

Introduction to Agroforesty. Brief Definitions History Classification of Agroforestry Systems. Opening exercise . Think of an example(s ) of an “ agroforestry system(s )” Describe what characteristics define it as an agroforestry system. A new name for old practices.

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Introduction to Agroforesty

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  1. Introduction to Agroforesty Brief Definitions History Classification of Agroforestry Systems

  2. Opening exercise Think of an example(s) of an “agroforestrysystem(s)” Describe what characteristics define it as an agroforestry system

  3. A new name for old practices • Temperate environments (Europeans, Native Americans, European settlers in the U.S.) • cutting/burning of forest; shifting cultivation • Forest farming: medicinals, fuel wood, edible plants • Moist tropics: • Created “plant mixtures” (mimic diversisty and structurally complexity of tropical forest): • Overstory: coconut, papaya • Mid story: bananas, citrus • Shrubs: coffee, cacao • Annuals: maize, beans, squash • Trees integrated into agricultural systems, but objective = food production (not trees)

  4. Origins of “agroforestry” • 1970’s: • Green revolution – but didn’t benefit poor farmers (irrigation, pesticides, fertilizers, seed, land tenure) • World Bank re-evaluated development policies – concern for the rural poor  social forestry program • FAO assessment of forestry programs – identified role of forestry in supporting agriculture  new policies to promote trees and forests into farming systems • New research showing that intercropping more effective than monoculture systems (IARCs, IITA)

  5. Origins of Agroforestrycon’t • 1970s 1980’s • Growing concern over deforestation in the tropics (loss of ecosystem stability & traditional cultures) • Creation of the International Development Research Center (IDRC) of Canada (1977) • Emphasized need for greater interdependence of forest and agriculture in low-income tropical countries • Recommended creation of international council for research in agroforestry • International Center for Research in Agroforesty (ICRAF) – 1977 in Nairobi, Kenya • Key role in research and dissemination

  6. Origins of Agroforestrycon’t • 1990’s – present • Application of agroforestry concepts to temperate regions (developed world) - sustainable land use • Broader focus on diverse “ecosystem services” • Fuel, food, feed, fodder • Carbon sequestration / climate change • Biomass for biofuels • Species diversity and habitat • Watershed protection (water quality & supply, erosion control, soil fertility) • Emphasis on integrating agroforestry on landscape level for optimizing benefits: • Targeting beneficial practices • Targeting landscape positions

  7. Definitions The deliberate growing of woody perennials on the same unit of land as agricultural crops and/or animals, either in some form of spatial mixture or sequence. There must be a significant interaction (positive and/or negative) between the woody and nonwoody components of the system, either ecological and/or economical (Nair 1993).

  8. Definitions (ICRAF) • Agroforestry is a collective name for land-use systems and technologies where woody perennials (trees, shrubs, palms, bamboos, etc.) are deliberately used on the same land-management units as agricultural crops and/or animals, in some form of spatial arrangement or temporal sequence. In agroforestry systems there are both ecological and economic interactions between the different components (Lundgren and Raintree, 1982). • Involves 2 or more species of plants (or animals), at least one is a woody perennial; • Always has two or more outputs; • The cycle of an AF system is always more than one year • More complex than a monocropping system (ecological and economically)

  9. Definitions An intensive land management system that optimizes the benefits (physical, biological, ecological, economic, social) arising from biophysical interactions created when trees and/or shrubs are deliberately combined with crops and/or livestock (Garrett et al. 1994). “The 4 I’s”: it must be intentional, intensive, integrative, and interactive

  10. Classification of agroforestry systems • Many different terminologies proposed • Trees with crops: • agrisilviculture • Trees with grass & animals: • silvopastoral • Crops, pasture, animals & trees: • agrosilvopastoral • Some major types of AF systems follow…

  11. Shifting cultivation & improved fallows

  12. Taungya (crops-teak)

  13. Homegardens

  14. Shade coffee

  15. Alley cropping (hedgerow intercropping)

  16. Silvopastoral & tree fodder systems

  17. Windbreaks, shelterbelts

  18. Riparian buffers

  19. What makes an agroforestrysystem sustainable (effective, appropriate)? • Interactions between ecological, social, and economic systems result in long-term benefits to society • Assessments require an integrated, multi-disciplinary approach • Integrate science with practice  key indicators of sustainability • Ecological processes • Economic vitality (livelihoods) • Societal well-being (quality of life)

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