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Agroforestry is one of the soil and moisture conservation practice where forest trees are grown along with agricultural crops. Trees are planted on the bunds of the field for multipurpose utilization. They act as live fencing or wind breakers thus protecting the agricultural crops in the main field. Agro forestry also helps farmers to become self reliant and self sufficient in terms of obtaining daily needs, and stops them from destroying the surrounding forest area. It creates a condusive micro-climate and adds 10 % of biomass to the main field that is required for the crops.
Agro-forestry was promoted to reduce the farmers’ dependency on forests for their fodder and timber requirements and to provide economic benefits. It also results in more diverse, healthy, and sustainable land-use, while focusing on meeting the economic, environmental, and domestic needs of people on their private lands.
Planting of trees both fruit and non-fruit has been promoted on the fields where food crops are grown, as they can also be helpful to each other. Trees provide a cover to the crops, some trees allow adequate light to filter through to crops below. Crops growing under the trees complement by providing a good cover crop to the trees as they save their own moisture while trees protection reduce the rate of evaporation. Many trees can fix nitrogen, enriching the soil when their residues decompose. This benefits subsequent non-leguminous crops, which do not have this capability.
Uses of Agro forestry:
The bunds become strong and controls soil erosion. The leaves of the plants or twigs are cut before flowering and incorporated into the main field as manures. Organic carbon and fertility of the soil is increased with increased microbial activity. Simultaneously the biomass content is increased that inturn helps in production of FYM / Compost.
They also help in conserving soil and moisture by reducing runoff, reduce evapotranspiration and harvest moisture from the ground level due to its wider canopy. It also absorbs the leached nutrients from the lower surface of soil and uses it for its growth. Apart from this, they provide fruits, fodder, greenmanure, timber and fibre to the farming family. The leaves or twigs of these trees are harvested every year and used to incorporate into the soil as greenmanure crops. Soil biological properties can be improved. Ecological balance can be maintained in the area. |
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