# Applications of agroforestry

> Mediated Wiki article. Canonical URL: https://mediated.wiki/source/Applications_of_agroforestry
> Markdown URL: https://mediated.wiki/source/Applications_of_agroforestry.md
> Source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Applications_of_agroforestry
> Source revision: 1355923087
> License: Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/)

The principles of [agroforestry](/source/Agroforestry) have been applied in many countries, in different regions of the globe.

## Applications

### Africa

A project to mitigate climate change with agriculture was launched in 2019 by the "Global EverGreening Alliance". The target is to sequester carbon from the atmosphere. By 2050 the restored land should sequestrate 20 billion tons of carbon annually.[1]

[Shamba](/source/Shamba_(agroforestry_system)) ([Swahili](/source/Swahili_language) for 'plantation') is an agroforestry system practiced in East Africa, particularly in [Kenya](/source/Kenya). Under this system, various crops are combined: bananas, beans, yams and corn, to which are added [timber](/source/Timber) resources, [beekeeping](/source/Beekeeping), [medicinal herbs](/source/Medicinal_herbs), [mushrooms](/source/Mushrooms), [forest fruits](/source/Non-timber_forest_product), [fodder](/source/Fodder) for livestock, etc.[2]

### Americas

The [Amazon rainforest](/source/Amazon_rainforest), rather than being a pristine [wilderness](/source/Wilderness), has been shaped by humans for at least 11,000 years through practices such as forest gardening and *[terra preta](/source/Terra_preta)*.[3] Since the 1970s, numerous [geoglyphs](/source/Geoglyph) have been discovered on deforested land in the Amazon rainforest, furthering the evidence of [pre-Columbian](/source/Pre-Columbian_era) civilizations.[4][5]

On the [Yucatán Peninsula](/source/Yucat%C3%A1n_Peninsula), much of the [Maya](/source/Maya_civilization) food supply was grown in "orchard gardens", known as *pet kot*.[6] The system takes its name from the low wall of stones (*pet* meaning 'circular' and *kot*, 'wall of loose stones') that characteristically surrounds the gardens.[7]

The environmental historian William Cronon argued in his 1983 book *Changes in the Land* that indigenous North Americans used controlled burning to form ideal habitat for wild game. The natural environment of New England was sculpted into a mosaic of habitats. When indigenous Americans hunted, they were "harvesting a foodstuff which they had consciously been instrumental in creating".[8] Most English settlers, however, assumed that the wealth of food provided by the forest was a result of natural forces, and that indigenous people lived off "the unplanted bounties of nature."[9] Animal populations declined after settlement, while fields of strawberries and raspberries found by the earliest settlers became overgrown and disappeared for want of maintenance.[10]

### Burma

Taungya is a system from [Burma](/source/Burma). In the initial stages of an orchard or tree [plantation](/source/Plantation), trees are small and widely spaced. The free space between the newly planted trees accommodates a seasonal crop, providing additional income. More complex taungyas use between-tree space for multiple crops. The crops become more shade tolerant as the tree canopies grow and the amount of sunlight reaching the ground declines. Thinning can maintain sunlight levels.[11]

### Hawaiʻi

[Native Hawaiians](/source/Native_Hawaiians) formerly practiced agroforestry adapted to the islands' tropical landscape, using in particular [breadfruit](/source/Breadfruit) and [coconut](/source/Coconut). Their ability to do this influenced the region's carrying capacity, social harmony, cooperation, and political complexity.[12] More recently, after scientific study of lo'I systems, attempts have been made to reintroduce dryland agroforestry in Hawaiʻi Island and Maui, fostering interdisciplinary collaboration between political leaders, landowners, and scientists.[13]

### India

*Itteri* agroforestry systems have been used in [Tamil Nadu](/source/Tamil_Nadu) since time immemorial. They involve the deliberate management of multipurpose trees and shrubs grown in intimate association with herbaceous species. They are often found along village and farm roads, small gullies, and field boundaries.[14]

[Bamboo](/source/Bamboo)-based agroforestry systems (Dendrocalamus strictus + sesame–chickpea) have been studied for enhancing productivity in semi-arid tropics of [central India](/source/Central_India).[15]

### South-east Asia

In response to the ecological degradation caused by industrial oil palm monocultures, biodiversity islands are being implemented in [Jambi](/source/Jambi) and [North Sumatra](/source/North_Sumatra), Indonesia. These involve integrating native tree species and fruit trees such as Durian into existing plantations to restore ecosystem functions and soil health.[16]

Similarly, in [Sarawak](/source/Sarawak) and [Sabah](/source/Sabah), Malaysia, agroforestry models are being developed for degraded peatlands primarily to mitigate chronic flooding caused by land subsidence in aging palm plantations. By rewetting drainage canals and cultivating flood-tolerant species, these systems aim to maintain agricultural productivity and prevent the total loss of arable land, with the reduction of carbon emissions serving as a significant environmental co-benefit.[17]

### Switzerland

Since the 1950s, four-fifths of Swiss [*Hochstammobstgärten*](https://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Zuchtform_(Obstgeh%C3%B6lze)) (traditional orchards with tall trees) have disappeared. An agroforestry scheme was tested here with *hochstamm* trees together with annual crops. Trees tested were walnut (*[Juglans regia](/source/Juglans_regia)*) and cherry (*[Prunus avium](/source/Prunus_avium)*). Forty to seventy trees per hectare were recommended, yields were somewhat decreasing with increasing tree height and foliage.[18] However, the total yield per area is shown to be up to 30 percent higher than for monocultural systems.[19]

Another set of tests involve growing *[Populus tremula](/source/Populus_tremula)* for [biofuel](/source/Biofuel) at 52 trees a hectare and with grazing pasture alternated every two to three years with maize or [sorghum](/source/Sorghum), wheat, strawberries and fallowing between rows of modern short-pruned & grafted apple [cultivars](/source/Cultivar) (['Boskoop'](/source/Belle_de_Boskoop) & ['Spartan'](/source/Spartan_(apple))) and growing modern [sour cherry](/source/Sour_cherry) cultivars ('Morina', 'Coraline' and 'Achat') and apples, with bushes in the rows with tree ([dogrose](/source/Dogrose), *[Cornus mas](/source/Cornus_mas)*, *[Hippophae rhamnoides](/source/Hippophae_rhamnoides)*) intercropped with various vegetables.[20]

## References

1. Hoffner, Erik (October 25, 2019). ["Grand African Savannah Green Up: Major $85 Million Project Announced to Scale up Agroforestry in Africa"](https://www.ecowatch.com/agroforestry-africa-climate-summit-2641102482.html). Ecowatch. Retrieved 27 October 2019.

1. ["The shamba system: an indigenous woman fights for the rights of her community"](https://www.unep.org/news-and-stories/story/shamba-system-indigenous-woman-fights-rights-her-community). *[United Nations Environment Programme](/source/United_Nations_Environment_Programme)*. 2019-11-04. Retrieved 2021-07-12.

1. ["Unnatural Histories - Amazon"](https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b0122njp). *BBC Four*. [Archived](https://web.archive.org/web/20151229160346/http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b0122njp) 2015-12-29 at the Wayback Machine.

1. Romero, Simon (January 14, 2012). ["Once Hidden by Forest, Carvings in Land Attest to Amazon's Lost World"](https://www.nytimes.com/2012/01/15/world/americas/land-carvings-attest-to-amazons-lost-world.html). *The New York Times*. [Archived](https://web.archive.org/web/20161220021324/http://www.nytimes.com/2012/01/15/world/americas/land-carvings-attest-to-amazons-lost-world.html?_r=1) December 20, 2016 at the Wayback Machine.

1. Pärssinen, Martti; Schaan, Denise; Ranzi, Alceu (2009). "Pre-Columbian geometric earthworks in the upper Purús: a complex society in western Amazonia". *Antiquity*. **83** (322): 1084–1095. [doi:10.1017/S0003598X00099373](https://doi.org/10.1017/S0003598X00099373). [S2CID 55741813](https://api.semanticscholar.org/CorpusID:55741813)

1. Smith, Michael Ernest & Masson, Marilyn A. (2000). [*The Ancient Civilizations of Mesoamerica*](https://books.google.com/books?id=FHRiisPV0FkC&pg=PA127). Wiley. p. 127. ISBN 978-0-631-21116-7.

1. Lentz, David L. (ed.) (2000). [*Imperfect Balance: Landscape Transformations in the Precolumbian Americas*](https://books.google.com/books?id=JsuiJEwOIJUC&pg=PA212). Columbia University Press. p. 212. ISBN 978-0-231-11157-7.

1. Cronon, William (1983). *Changes in the Land*. New York: Hill and Wang. p. 51. ISBN 0-8090-0158-6.

1. Cronon, William (1983). *Changes in the Land*. New York: Hill and Wang. p. 37. ISBN 0-8090-0158-6.

1. Cronon, William (1983). *Changes in the Land*. New York: Hill and Wang. p. 91. ISBN 0-8090-0158-6.

1. Abugre, S.; Asare, A.I.; Anaba, J.A. (2010). ["Gender equity under the Modified Taungya System (MTS). A case of the Bechem Forest District of Ghana"](http://www.ijsf.org/dat/art/vol03/ijsf_vol3_no2_03_abugre_gender_equity_ghana.pdf). *International Journal of Social Forestry*. **3** (2): 134–150 (137). [Archived](https://web.archive.org/web/20150819164151/http://www.ijsf.org/dat/art/vol03/ijsf_vol3_no2_03_abugre_gender_equity_ghana.pdf) 19 August 2015 at the Wayback Machine.

1. Lincoln, Noa Kekuewa; Lee, Tiffany M.; Quintus, Seth; Haensel, Thomas P. E.; Chen, Qi (December 2023). "Agroforestry Distribution and Contributions in Ancient Hawaiian Agriculture". *Human Ecology*. **51** (6): 1113–1215. [doi:10.1007/s10745-023-00471-4](https://doi.org/10.1007/s10745-023-00471-4)

1. Lincoln, Noa Kekuewa; Rossen, Jack M.; Vitousek, Peter et al. (2018). "Restoration of 'Āina Malo'o on Hawaiʻi Island: Expanding Biocultural Relationships". *Sustainability*. **10** (1): 3985. [Bibcode:2018Sust...10.3985L](https://ui.adsabs.harvard.edu/abs/2018Sust...10.3985L). [doi:10.3390/su10113985](https://doi.org/10.3390/su10113985)

1. Van, Sangyan (February 2019). ["Itteri Biofence - Solution for Peafowl nuisance"](http://tfri.icfre.gov.in/VanSangyan/February_2019_issue.pdf). *Vansangyan*. **6**: 33–34.

1. ["Could bamboo-based agroforestry systems be the latest kind of climate-smart agriculture?"](https://www.worldagroforestry.org/blog/2020/05/18/could-bamboo-based-agroforestry-systems-be-latest-kind-climate-smart-agriculture). *World Agroforestry*. 2020-05-18. [Archived](https://web.archive.org/web/20200611125357/http://www.worldagroforestry.org/blog/2020/05/18/could-bamboo-based-agroforestry-systems-be-latest-kind-climate-smart-agriculture) 11 June 2020 at the Wayback Machine. Retrieved 2021-11-25.

1. Teuscher, Miriam; Gérard, Anne; Brose, Ulrich; Buchori, Damayanti; Clough, Yann; Ehbrecht, Martin; Hölscher, Dirk; Irawan, Bambang; Sundawati, Leti; Wollni, Meike; Kreft, Holger (2016-10-17). "Experimental Biodiversity Enrichment in Oil-Palm-Dominated Landscapes in Indonesia". *Frontiers in Plant Science*. **7**: 1538. [Bibcode:2016FrPS...07.1538T](https://ui.adsabs.harvard.edu/abs/2016FrPS...07.1538T). [doi:10.3389/fpls.2016.01538](https://doi.org/10.3389/fpls.2016.01538). [PMC 5065973](https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5065973). [PMID 27799935](https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/27799935)

1. Lupascu, Massimo; Taillardat, Pierre; Sasmito, Sigit D.; Agus, F.; Mudiyarso, Daniel; Ramchunder, Sorain J.; Tata, Hesti L.; Taylor, David (2023-09-01). ["Climate-smart peatland management and the potential for synergies between food security and climate change objectives in Indonesia"](https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0959378023000973). *Global Environmental Change*. **82**. [Bibcode:2023GEC....8202731L](https://ui.adsabs.harvard.edu/abs/2023GEC....8202731L). [doi:10.1016/j.gloenvcha.2023.102731](https://doi.org/10.1016/j.gloenvcha.2023.102731)

1. ["Agroforst > Publikationen > Publikationen und Dokumente Schweiz"](http://www.agroforst.ch/Portals/1/Dokumente/Home/Forschung/Kaeser_Agroforst_D.pdf) (in German). *agroforst.ch*. [Archived](https://web.archive.org/web/20190925202225/http://www.agroforst.ch/Portals/1/Dokumente/Home/Forschung/Kaeser_Agroforst_D.pdf) 25 September 2019 at the Wayback Machine. Retrieved 23 April 2018.

1. ["Agroforstwirtschaft in der Schweiz"](https://www.agrarforschungschweiz.ch/wp-content/uploads/2019/12/2011_03_1646.pdf) (in German). *agrarforschungschweiz.ch*. Retrieved 22 August 2020.

1. ["Agroforst > Publikationen > Publikationen und Dokumente Schweiz"](http://www.agroforst.ch/Portals/1/Dokumente/Home/Forschung/AFS_10_2012_D_Kuster.pdf) (in German). *agroforst.ch*. [Archived](https://web.archive.org/web/20190925202231/http://www.agroforst.ch/Portals/1/Dokumente/Home/Forschung/AFS_10_2012_D_Kuster.pdf) 25 September 2019 at the Wayback Machine. Retrieved 23 April 2018.

---
Adapted from the Wikipedia article [Applications of agroforestry](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Applications_of_agroforestry) by Wikipedia contributors ([contributor history](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Applications_of_agroforestry?action=history)). Available under [Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/). Changes may have been made.