Agroforestry: Integrating Crops, Trees, and Livestock for Sustainable Land Use
Description
Agroforestry
Unlocking the Potential of Agroforestry: Types, Benefits, and Importance in Sustainable Agriculture
Description: Discover the diverse types and advantages of agroforestry, a sustainable land-use system that combines crops, trees, and livestock. Learn how agroforestry enhances environmental, economic, and social aspects of agriculture.
Agroforestry is any sustainable land-use system that maintains or increases total yields by combining food crops (annuals) with tree crops (perennials) and/or livestock on the same unit of land, either alternately or at the same time, using management practices that suit the social and cultural characteristics of the local people and the economic and ecological conditions of the area.
Agroforestry is a collective name for a land-use system and technology whereby woody perennials are deliberately used on the same land management unit as agricultural crops and/or animals in some form of spatial arrangement or temporal sequence. In an agroforestry system there are both ecological and economical interactions between the various components.
DIFFERENCE BETWEEN SOCIAL FORESTRY AND AGROFORESTRY
Social forestry is defined as “Forestry outside the conventional forests which primarily aim at providing continuous flow of goods and services for the benefit of people. This definition implies that the production of forest goods for the needs of the local people is Social forestry. Thus, social forestry aims at growing forests of the choice of the local population.
TYPES OF AGROFORESTRY SYSTEMS
AGRISILVICULTURAL SYSTEMS
In this system, agricultural crops are intercropped with tree crops in the interspace between the trees. Under this system agricultural crops can be grown upto two years under protective irrigated condition and under rainfed farming upto four years. The crops can be grown profitably upto the above said period beyond which it is uneconomical to grow grain crops. However, fodder crops, shade loving crops and shallow rooted crops can be grown economically. Wider spacing is adopted without sacrificing tree population for easy cultural operation and to get more sunlight to the intercrop. Performance of the tree crops is better in this system when compared to monoculture
SILVOPASTORAL SYSTEMS
The production of woody plants combined with pasture is referred to Silvipasture system. The trees and shrubs may be used primarily to produce fodder for livestock or they may be grown for timber, fuelwood, fruit or to improve the soil.
This system is classified in to three categories
Protein bank:
In this Silvipastoral system, various multipurpose trees (protein rich trees) are planted in or around farmlands and range lands for cut and carry fodder production to meet the feed requirement of livestock during the fodder deficit period in winter Example: Acacia nilotica, Albizia lebbeck, Azadirachta indica, Leucaena leucocephala, Gliricidia sepium, Sesbania grandiflora
Livefence of fodder trees and hedges:
In this system, various fodder trees and hedges are planted as live fence to protect the property from stray animals or other biotic influences. Example: Gliricidia sepium, Sesbania grandiflora, Erythrina sp, Acacia sp.
Trees and shrubs on pasture:
In this system, various tree and shrub species are scattered irregularly or arranged according to some systemic pattern to supplement forage production. Example: Acacia nilotica, Acacia leucophloea ,Tamarindus indica, Azadirachta indica.
AGROSILVOPASTORAL SYSTEMS
The production of woody perennials combined with annuals and pastures is referred Agrisilvopastural system. This system is grouped into two categories.
Home gardens
This system is found extensively in high rainfall areas in tropical South and South east Asia. This practice finds expression in the states of Kerala and Tamil Nadu with humid tropical climates where coconut is the main crop. Many species of trees, bushes , vegetables and other herbaceous plants are grown in dense and in random or spatial and temporal arrangements. Most home gardens also support a variety of animals. Fodder grass and legumes are also grown to meet the fodder requirement of cattle. In India, every homestead has around 0.20 to 0.50 ha land for personal production.
Home gardens represent land use systems involving deliberate management of multipurpose trees and shrubs in intimate association with annual and perennial agricultural crops and livestock within the compounds of individual houses. The whole tree- crop- animal units are being intensively managed by family labour. Home gardens can also be called as Multitier system or Multitier cropping.
Home gardens are highly productive, sustainable and very practicable. Food production is primary function of most home gardens.
b) Woody Hedgerows:
In this system various woody hedges, especially fast growing and coppicing fodder shrubs and trees are planted for the purpose of browse, mulch, green manure, soil conservation etc. The following species viz., Erythrina sp, Leucaena luecocephala, Sesbania grandiflora are generally used.
IV) OTHER SYSTEMS
a) Apiculture with trees: In this system various honey (nector) producing trees frequently visited by honeybees are planted on the boundary of the agricultural fields
b) Aquaforestry: In this system various trees and shrubs preferred by fish are planted on the boundary and around fish ponds. Tree leaves are used as feed for fish. The main role of this system is fish production and bund stabilization around fish ponds
c) Mixed wood lots: In this system, special location specific MultiPurpose Trees ( MPTs) are grown mixed or separately planted for various purposes such as wood, fodder, soil conservation , soil reclamation etc.
BENEFITS OF AGROFORESTRY SYSTEM
A) Environmental benefits
Reduction of pressure on natural forests.
More efficient recycling of nutrients by deep rooted trees on the site
Better protection of ecological systems
Reduction of surface run-off, nutrient leaching and soil erosion through impeding effect of tree roots and stems on these processes
Improvement of microclimate, such as lowering of soil surface temperature and reduction of evaporation of soil moisture through a combination of mulching and shading
Increment in soil nutrients through addition and decomposition of litterfall.
vii) Improvement of soil structure through the constant addition of organic matter from decomposed litter.
B) Economic benefits
Increment in an outputs of food, fuel wood , fodder, fertiliser and timber;
Reduction in incidence of total crop failure, which is common to single cropping or monoculture systems
Increase in levels of farm income due to improved and sustained productivity
C) Social benefits
Improvement in rural living standards from sustained employment and higher income
Improvement in nutrition and health due to increased quality and diversity of food outputs
Stabilization and improvement of communities through elimination of the need to shift sites of farm activities.
Here is the link to Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana – Grameen (PMAY-G)
