Agroforestry Type: Silvopastoral

Czech Association for Agroforestry (CSAL)

A voluntary non-profit organisation that promotes agroforestry practices in the Czech Republic. It connects the interests of agroforestry farmers, scientific organisations and agricultural consultants and focuses primarily on education, raising awareness and exchanging information about agroforestry between farmers, advisors and other groups. The goal of the association is to raise awareness of the alternative use of agricultural land in the style of agroforestry systems, and to improve the condition of the soil and the environment without reducing production. It is a very important platform for the exchange of information (the website hosts many useful resources such as videos, reports and newsletters), and organises meetings, educational events and presentations on agroforestry issues in the Czech Republic.

AFINET – A revitalization of a wood pasture in the Bakony

This video is a Hungarian innovation tutorial video on wood pasture restoration aiming to share farmer experiences on agroforestry system management. Produced as part of the AFINET project, it features Antal Varga at Zöldág Farm in Hungary, which is a ReForest living lab farm. Find out more about it here https://agroreforest.eu/living-lab-hungary-olaszfalu/

Agroforestry Pollinator Plantations for the Future

The app will firstly give you access to Forest Research’s state-of-the-art Ecological Site Classification (ESC), APP model, giving you information on suitability of tree species, also allowing you to see how climate change will likely affect your holding. Future climate scenarios adopted by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) show Representative Concentration Pathways (RCP) of greenhouse gases concentration trajectory, all of which are considered possible depending on the volume of greenhouse gases emitted in the years to come. RCP is directly linked to global mean average temperature in Celsius.

These tools will enable you to make an informed choice of which wild species trees have the greatest chance to survive climate change predictions on your land site. Information on other outputs from trees in farming to help you assess how it fits with your other enterprises and business is also included, as well as ideas for planting schemes and configurations. Planting in mixed species stands provides the best outcome for both tree species and their pollinators as this provides forage over a greater part of each season, helping ensure pollinators don’t starve. APP4future schemes also provide habitat and forage for pollinators, whose populations are declining. Supporting pollinators is vital for nature and our farmed landscape, increasing pollination and yields of all insect-pollinated crops.

Best practice: fodder trees for dairy or beef cattle

Short film (in Flemish with English subtitles) produced as part of an Interreg Europe project – BioGov. It outlines the part trees can play in providing animal fodder, animal welfare, combating erosion, enhancing biodiversity and limiting greenhouse gases and gives some information on which trees should be planted where and how. It features Wim Govaerts who explains mineral deficiencies in cows and ways in which tree fodder can provide different minerals. For example, ash, rowan and maple can help with copper deficiency, hornbeam and hazel can provide manganese…

SIGNAL – Sustainable intensification of agriculture through agroforestry

SIGNAL is part of the funding initiative BonaRes (Soil as a sustainable Resource for the Bioeconomy) which aims to improve soil functions through the development of sustainable management systems and increase understanding of soils, soil processes and soil functions. The project aims to evaluate whether and under which site conditions agroforestry in Germany can be a land use alternative that is ecologically, economically, and socially more sustainable than conventional agriculture. The effects of agroforestry systems on soil ecological properties are being investigated at 4 arable and 2 grassland sites in the north-east of Germany. Project information and various publications can be accessed via the website (mainly in German).

AgroForAdapt

AgroForAdapt is a EU LIFE project promoting agroforestry systems for climate change adaptation of agrarian and forestry sectors in Mediterranean areas. It focuses on two types of agroforestry systems: silvoarable and silvopastoral, with the aim of obtaining benefits resulting from the interactions between the trees and the crops or livestock.

The project aims to evaluate and demonstrate how Mediterranean agroforestry systems are a land use that promotes resilience to drought and forest fires, while improving the provision of multiple ecosystem services i.e. protecting biodiversity, income diversification, profitability, carbon fixation, landscape and socio-cultural values etc. It aims to increase the Mediterranean demonstrative agroforestry area by installing or improving the management of 291 ha of silvoarable systems and 511 ha of silvopastoral systems and inducing the replication of additional 300 and 1,075 ha, respectively. It is focused on developing and applying innovative tools to evaluate ecosystem services and vulnerability to climate change, facilitating the design and prioritisation of areas to install agroforestry systems, and evaluating the long-term performance of demonstrative agroforestry systems.

Various publications and resources will be accessible / can be accessed via the website (some are in Spanish only).

Quinta das Abelhas (“farm of bees”)

Quinta das Abelhas (‘A farm for the Bees’) is a project focused on developing, testing, and studying complex agroforestry systems in the Portuguese Alentejo. It was developed by Marc Leiber, a student of Ernst Götsc, who has implemented what have become known as syntropic farming techniques at Quinta das Abelhas, to restore degraded soil, provide a home for pollinating insects, and re-establish the water cycle to create a climate-resilient agroforest.
This gives you details of the ‘model farm’ layout integrating fruit, nut and vegetable crops, and beneficial impacts that have been observed. It was hoped that it could demonstrate that agriculture could be environmentally and financially rewarding for both the older farmers and younger generations that could be drawn back to the countryside… Results show that agroforestry is having a highly positive impact on productivity, while helping to drastically reduce the amount of irrigation and (organic) fertiliser required.
This is one of the ‘model farms’ featured on the reNature website – a consortium with a base in the Netherlands that brings together knowledge about regenerative agriculture, impact monitoring, and stakeholder engagement, to make the business case for regenerative agriculture around the world. They position themselves as being a “unique global agroforestry hub and service provider”

Spanish Farmers Reduce Fire Risk Through Sustainable Agroforestry Practices

A short film in Galicia, Spain, the European area with the highest density of fires, where there are some farmers and ranchers who practice traditional methods of agroforestry and livestock farming. It gives some insights into how mixing crops, trees and grazing animals on the same land can provide benefits for soil health, carbon sequestration and fire prevention. You can also access an interesting written article from the video description. The video is in Spanish with English subtitles.

Why Dairy Farming And Silvopastoral Agroforestry Could Be The Perfect Match

Article featured in Irish Farm Business Dairying magazine written by the Irish Agroforestry Forum. It asks could silvopasture be a design solution to the environmental challenges facing farming? It outlines many ways that well designed silvopasture can benefit a farm and farm business, including helping increase profits and productivity and animal and soil health, diversifying the farm business, buffering against weather, drought and flood risks while benefiting the environment, and positively impacting the water and carbon cycle. You can download the article from this webpage.

How can agroforestry contribute towards biodiversity conservation?

This is the recording of an online workshop hosted by the Organic Research Centre (ORC) in October 2021 and organised as part of the Farming the Future programme. It set out to explore how agroforestry could contribute towards the conservation and restoration of biodiversity, and the policy options that could support the realisation of these benefits. Chaired by Colin Tosh, Senior Agroforestry researcher at ORC, it features Tom Staton, University of Reading PhD researcher on agroforestry and biodiversity in arable systems (particularly focusing on natural pest control and pollination), Devon-based farmer Carolyn Richards, who reflects on her experiences of developing silvopasture with a view to better managing her herd and enhancing biodiversity, and Helen Chesshire – Senior Farming Advisor for the Woodland Trust who asks how the UK policy might help agroforestry achieve biodiversity goals. It also features a lively interactive discussion with delegates.

Skip to content