The history of agroforestry. Definition and concepts of agroforestry: community forestry, farm forestry, and social forestry. Agroforestry systems and practices. Agroforestry species. Soil productivity and protection. Design and evaluation of agroforestry systems. Agroforestry in the temperate zone.

This college-level textbook summarizes the state of current knowledge in the rapidly expanding field of agroforestry. The book, organized into 25 chapters in six sections, reviews the developments in agroforestry during the past 15 years and describes the accomplishments in the application of biophysical (plant and soil related) and socioeconomic sciences to agroforestry. Although the major focus of the book is on the tropics, where the practice and potential of agroforestry are particularly promising, the developments in temperate zone agroforestry are also discussed. This text is recommended for students, teachers, and researchers in agroforestry, farming systems, and tropical land use.

Agroforestry – the practice of growing trees and crops in interacting combinations – is recognized the world over as an integrated approach to sustainable land-use. Agroforestry systems, being multifunctional, facilitate not only the production of food and wood products but also provide a variety of ecosystem services such as climate-change mitigation, biodiversity conservation, and soil quality improvement. Agroforestry research has made rapid strides since organized efforts started in the late 1970s. Today, a vast body of scientific knowledge and an impressive array of publications on agroforestry are available. Four World Congresses on Agroforestry conducted once every five years since 2004 have brought together the global community of agroforestry professionals and practitioners to share and discuss the emerging trends and paradigm shifts in this field. The fifth Congress is scheduled to be held in Québec, Canada. However, a comprehensive college-level textbook incorporating these research findings did not exist until this book was first published. The first edition of this book in 1993 (Nair, P. K. R., 1993) is out of print and somewhat dated. This revised edition, with emphasis on the scientific developments during the past more than four decades, addresses this long-felt need.

This textbook is one of the finest books on agroforestry that offers a global review of the approaches, tools and technologies, research innovations and real-world practices in agroforestry. The book offers a comprehensive guide to basic principles, techniques and applications, integrative strategies, economic and environmental concerns, and future trends in agroforestry in different regions of the world. It will help all scientists, students, professors, farmers, foresters, decision-makers, and politicians who wish to build a safe land use system for food, energy and better environment for future generations. This textbook will enormously benefit the students for their preparation of competitive exams like UPSC-Civil Services, UPSC-Indian Forest Service, ICAR-ARS Scientist/NET Exam, ICFRE Forestry Scientist Exam, State Public Service Commission Exams and University Entrance Exam for admission to M.Sc. and Ph.D. programmes.

During the Green Revolution in many developing countries, agroforestry systems tended to reflect modern agricultural systems by their intensive use of fertilizers, pesticides, and site modifications to fit the desired crop. Since the 1980's, agroforestry has learned from traditional indigenous systems to work more closely with the fertility of marginal lands through the use of less intensive cultivation and fallow periods. True to its title, this volume provides a silvicultural framework for thinking about the design and practice of agroforestry systems. Unlike many general agroforestry books, The Silvicultural Basis for Agroforestry Systems emphasizes research and thoughts from a forestry perspective rather than an agricultural one. Many of the examples used in this reference are based on the ecological theory of forests that concern the competition for resources of plant-plant and plant-animal mixtures. This guide also uses the knowledge gained about the temporal and spatial dynamic and productivity of forests as the basis for silvicultural applications in agroforestry systems. The Silvicultural Basis for Agroforestry Systems contains three parts:

Interest and initiatives in agroforestry education and training, as in other aspects of agroforestry development, have increased tremendously during the past decade. Coordination of such educational activities was initiated by the first international workshop on education in agroforestry organized by the International Council for Research in Agroforestry (ICRAF) in Decem ber 1982, at Nairobi, Kenya. Since then, agroforestry has been incorporated into the curricula of many educational and training institutions around the world. Moreover, several institutions have developed entire academic programs specifically in agroforestry. However, most of these activities are still isolated initiatives, without common strategies or philosophies. This second international agroforestry workshop was therefore planned to pro vide a forum for reviewing progress, sharing programs and experiences, and planning and coordinating future directions in agroforestry education and training. The main objectives were to review the on-going programs, to assess the scope of professional education and training in relation to the perceived needs of trained personnel, to recommend guidelines for further program development, and to establish networking among institutions and agencies involved in agroforestry education and training. These proceedings contain the keynote papers, regional/country presenta tions and conclusions and recommendations of the International Workshop on Education and Training in Agroforestry held at the University of Florida, Gainesville, USA in December, 1988. The strategy of the workshop was to facilitate focused discussion on identified issues by an invited group of world leaders in agroforestry education and training.

Agroforestry (AF) is a dynamic, ecologically based, natural resources management system that, by integrating trees on farms, ranches, and in other landscapes, diversifies and increases production and promotes social, economic, and environmental benefits for land users. Further, it is receiving increasing attention as a sustainable land-management option worldwide because of its ecological, economic, and social attributes. Advances have been achieved by building on past research accomplishments and expanding AF’s stakeholder base, which now includes private/public partnerships, communities, ecologists, farmers, indigenous peoples, and policymakers in both temperate and tropical countries. AF has now been recognized as a valuable problem-solving approach to ensuring food security and rebuilding resilient rural environments. Recent studies have shown that more than 1 billion hectares of agricultural land have more than 10% tree cover. Of this area, 160 million hectares have more than 50% tree cover. Agricultural ecosystems can be further improved through AF to achieve environmental restoration, greater farm productivity, and key ecological services, including climate change mitigation and adaptation for improved rural livelihood. In fact, it is largely considered synonymous with climate smart agriculture and a remedy for many modern environmental challenges. Consequently, AF’s knowledge base is being expanded at a rapid rate, as illustrated by the increasing number and quality of scientific publications on various forms and different aspects of AF. This book offers state-of-the-art information on the fundamental concepts and history of AF and its evolution as a science, presenting a wealth of advanced research results and evaluations relating to different aspects of AF. Accordingly, it will be useful for a broad readership, including students, foresters, farmers, local communities, indigenous peoples, civil society institutions, media, policymakers and the general public.

This book offers comprehensive insights into the management of agroforestry for livelihood security and sustainable development in the tropics, addressing ecological interactions, productivity, and the monetization of carbon credits, while also outlining a future roadmap and policy challenges. Agroforestry is a brilliant land use farming practice that covers 1.6 billion hectares (78 percent in the tropics and 22 percent in the temperate regions) to enhance plant diversification, productivity, and livelihood across generations, maintaining eco-restoration. It ensures socioeconomic upliftment and a standard livelihood for people along with many ecosystem services for sustainable development under resilient climates, which are today’s key topics popularized among policy makers, stakeholders, scientists, ecologists, and climate supporters in the tropical world. However, more than 75 percent of the world’s poor directly depend on natural resources for their livelihoods. Adopting climate resilient agroforestry not only maximizes productivity and farmers’ socioeconomic status but also mitigates climate change issues through carbon sequestrations for better carbon management in the tropics. This book addresses agroforestry management for livelihood security and sustainable development in the tropics. Readers will earn about ecological interactions and productivity in tropical agroforestry ensuring greater ecosystem services and livelihood resilience under changing climates, as well as building livelihood resilience through monetization of carbon credits in agroforestry in the tropics. Livelihood and sustainability-based policy in agroforestry, its challenges, and a future roadmap are also covered. This volume provides new insights related to updated research, development and extension activities for combating climate change through carbon sequestration to enhance intensify greater productivity, and livelihood and ecosystem services for ensuring the goals of sustainable development.

North American Agroforestry Explore the many benefits of alternative land-use systems with this incisive resource Humanity has become a victim of its own success. While we’ve managed to meet the needs—to one extent or another—of a large portion of the human population, we’ve often done so by ignoring the health of the natural environment we rely on to sustain our planet. And by deteriorating the quality of our air, water, and land, we’ve put into motion consequences we’ll be dealing with for generations. In the newly revised Third Edition of North American Agroforestry, an expert team of researchers delivers an authoritative and insightful exploration of an alternative land-use system that exploits the positive interactions between trees and crops when they are grown together and bridges the gap between production agriculture and natural resource management. This latest edition includes new material on urban food forests, as well as the air and soil quality benefits of agroforestry, agroforestry’s relevance in the Mexican context, and agroforestry training and education. The book also offers: A thorough introduction to the development of agroforestry as an integrated land use management strategy Comprehensive explorations of agroforestry nomenclature, concepts, and practices, as well as an agroecological foundation for temperate agroforestry Practical discussions of tree-crop interactions in temperate agroforestry, including in systems such as windbreak practices, silvopasture practices, and alley cropping practices In-depth examinations of vegetative environmental buffers for air and water quality benefits, agroforestry for wildlife habitat, agroforestry at the landscape level, and the impact of agroforestry on soil health Perfect for environmental scientists, natural resource professionals and ecologists, North American Agroforestry will also earn a place in the libraries of students and scholars of agricultural sciences interested in the potential benefits of agroforestry.