Farmer influence on shade tree diversity in rustic plots of Coffea canephora in Panama coffee-agroforestry

Fujisawa, Natsuho; Roubik, David W.; Inoue, Manami

doi:10.1007/s10457-020-00551-0

Cited by 5 publications

(3 citation statements)

References 38 publications

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“…Next to the ecological benefits, it is crucial for farmers to know how increasing complexity impacts labour demand (Kansanga et al, 2020). It has been shown that for some agroforestry farmers keeping labour demand moderate is even more important than maximising productivity (Fujisawa et al, 2020;Scudder et al, 2022;Tilden et al, 2023) and in the future, labour availability is projected to be a major constraint for farmers (Ryan, 2023). It is often postulated that adopting more complex agroforestry systems increases labour demand (Brodt et al, 2019;Esche et al, 2022;Scudder et al, 2022;Smith et al, 2022), but labour inputs required to perform specific activities, such as weeding, might also decrease (Armengot et al, 2016).…”

Section: Knowledge Gapsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…A majority of the sampled multistrata agroforestry systems required relatively low labour inputs, particularly for activities such as harvesting and weeding. All managers of agroforestry systems with lower labour demand than monoculture references stated the explicit objective to keep labour demand moderate to low, which is a common strategy amongst many agroforestry farmers around the world, even if it is associated with low productivity (Adimassu et al, 2015;Fujisawa et al, 2020;Scudder et al, 2022;Tilden et al, 2023). From a profitability point of view, this can be beneficial as labour costs are often the largest expense and incremental productivity gains in response to increased labour inputs do not always pay off (Davidova et al, 2022;Esche et al, 2022;Scudder et al, 2022).…”

Section: Agroforestry Complexity and Labour Demandmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…The integration of trees and crops in agroforestry can impact labour requirements in numerous ways (Nair et al, 2021): the exact relationships between complexity and labour demands are yet ambiguous. This uncertainty constrains the rapid scaling of these systems to larger areas or supply chains, since labour demand is a key decision variable for the adoption of agricultural practices (Adimassu et al, 2015;Fujisawa et al, 2020). For agroforestry systems, this ambiguity may partly be explained by the variation in labour demand for specific crops.…”

Section: Introduction Chaptermentioning

confidence: 99%

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On the complexity of agroforestry systems

Steinfeld

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Tropical soils are prone to rapid degradation if not managed well, and agroforestry systems have the potential to restore degraded soils and support agricultural production together with other ecosystem services. In Brazil, an increasing number of pioneering farmers are establishing agroforestry systems on previously cleared farmland. However, while there are a wide range of agroforestry systems, this diversity has hardly been quantified, and it is not clear how these systems differ in their capacity for nutrient cycling to reverse soil degradation. The objectives of the study were to assess innovative agroforestry systems in terms of taxonomic and functional diversity, spatial structure and management, and to assess how these systems differ in terms of structural complexity and their potential for nutrient cycling. We assessed a LiDAR-derived stand structural complexity index (SSCI), interrow spacing, stem density, tree species richness and diversity, community weighted means (CWM) of foliar nitrogen and wood density, livestock density, pruning and mowing regimes in 30 agroforestry systems in the state of São Paulo, Brazil. We used N, P, K, Ca and Mg stocks in litter as a proxy for nutrient cycling. The agroforestry systems could be broadly categorized into silvopastures, multistrata and successional agroforestry systems. These types spanned a gradient of structural complexity, and this complexity was positively associated with tree species richness and planting density. Litter nutrient stocks were positively associated with pruning and mulching, and negatively associated with CWM of wood density, indicating the importance of pioneer trees. Overall, our results suggest that densely planted, pruned agroforestry systems that contain high species richness, including pioneer trees, contain relatively high amounts of N, P, K, Ca and Mg in their litter. These findings provide insight in the key characteristics of agroforestry systems to support nutrient cycling, and can inform the design of agroforestry systems for the regeneration of degraded agricultural land.

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Section: Knowledge Gapsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Agroforestry Complexity and Labour Demandmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introduction Chaptermentioning

confidence: 99%

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On the complexity of agroforestry systems

Steinfeld

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Growth and biomass-allocation responses of arabica coffee young plants subjected to the interactive effects of root deformation and light availability

Lopes,

Dos Santos,

Allaman

et al. 2024

Acta Physiol Plant

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Tree Effects on Coffee Leaf Rust at Field and Landscape Scales

et al. 2023

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While integrating trees into agricultural systems (i.e., agroforestry systems) provides many valuable ecosystem services, they can also interact with plant diseases. We demonstrate that a detailed understanding of how plant diseases interact with trees in agroforestry systems is necessary to identify key tree canopy characteristics, leaf traits, spatial arrangements, and management options that can help control plant diseases at different spatial scales. We focus our analysis on how trees affect coffee leaf rust, a major disease impacting one of the world’s most significant crop commodities. We show that trees can both promote and discourage the development of coffee leaf rust at the plot scale via microclimate modifications in the understory. Based on our understanding of the role of tree characteristics in shaping the microclimate, we identify several canopy characteristics and leaf traits that can help manage coffee leaf rust at the plot scale: namely, thin canopies with high openness, short base height, horizontal branching, and small, dentate leaves. In contrast, at the edge of coffee farms, having large trees with high canopy volume and small, thick, waxy leaves is more useful to reduce throughflow wind speeds and intercept the airborne dispersal of urediniospores, an important consideration to control disease at the landscape scale. Seasonal pruning can help shape trees into the desired form, and trees can be spatially arranged to optimize desired effects. This case study demonstrates the added value of combining process-based epidemiology studies with functional trait ecology to improve disease management in agroforestry systems.

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Farmer influence on shade tree diversity in rustic plots of Coffea canephora in Panama coffee-agroforestry

Cited by 5 publications

References 38 publications

On the complexity of agroforestry systems

On the complexity of agroforestry systems

Growth and biomass-allocation responses of arabica coffee young plants subjected to the interactive effects of root deformation and light availability

Tree Effects on Coffee Leaf Rust at Field and Landscape Scales

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