Chapter 7 Forestry: Reforestation, Natural Forest Management

AgroforestryAgroforestry Products andServicesBeyond timber, trees inagroforestry systems can yieldmany valuable products, such as:• Food• Fodder• Fuelwood• Poles and rustic buildingmaterials• Fiber• Mulch• Medicines and cosmetics• Oils and resinsIn addition to their role inimproving degraded sites,agroforestry trees may serveimportant functions in the farmingsystem, including:• Improving crop fieldmicroclimate• Conserving soil, enhancingsoil fertility and suppressingweeds• Anchoring a living fence ordemarcating a field boundary• Sequestering carbon to slowthe rate of global climatechange• Protecting biodiversity• Stabilizing watershedsBrief Description ofSectorAgroforestry is the practiceof adding a tree component tocommon farming systems.Better reflecting the diversityof natural systems, thecombination enhances theoverall sustainability andproductivity of agriculture. Ina farming system, trees canprovide an array ofenvironmental and economicbenefits. Agroforestry is abetter use of marginal orinfertile land than traditionalopen-furrow agriculture, andcan be particularly importantwhere smallholders haveexpanded onto fragile,sloping or hilly areas.Agroforestry can also easegrowing demographicpressures on land use in thenear to medium term. This isespecially true whereAgroforestry is a better use of marginalor infertile land than traditional farming,and can be particularly important wheresmallholders have expanded onto fragile,sloping or hilly areas.restricting access to degraded land in order to restore it would involve unduehardship and, in effect, turn local people into environmental refugees.Trees can help crops in a number of ways. Some trees send their roots deepinto the subsoil, absorbing moisture and nutrients, and returning them to thesoil as leaf litter or prunings. Chopped into mulch, pruned branches can helpsuppress weeds and maintain soil moisture. Many trees can enrich the soil byfixing nitrogen. Trees with a light, thin canopy can help certain crops bysheltering them enough to reduce the rate of evapotranspiration whileallowing them enough sunlight to grow. When planted as windbreaks,contour hedges or living fences, trees protect crops and the soil from heavywinds and rain. Trees may also, of course, have direct economic valuethemselves by producing fruit, nuts, bark, fodder, timber and fuelwood.There are two basic types of agroforestry systems: simultaneous andsequential.In simultaneous agroforestry, the tree and crop components grow at thesame time, though they may compete for light, water or nutrients. Examplesinclude home gardens that incorporate useful trees; alley cropping, in whichcrops are planted between rows of shrubs or trees; and several types ofsilvopastoral systems, which combine shade-tolerant grasses with treesuseful for timber, fodder and/or shading livestock.EGSSAA: FORESTRY • March 2009 • download from www.encapafrica.org24 of 30