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Alley Cropping. An Agroforestry Practice. This presentation was developed by the USDA National Agroforestry Center. Presentation Objectives. Define alley cropping Describe the benefits Explain the basic design considerations Identify potential crops and species. What is Agroforestry?. - PowerPoint PPT Presentation
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AN AGROFORESTRY PRACTICE
Alley Cropping
This presentation was developed by the USDA National Agroforestry Center
Alley Cropping
2
Presentation Objectives
Define alley cropping
Describe the benefits
Explain the basic design considerations
Identify potential crops and species
Alley Cropping
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What is Agroforestry?
…the intentional combining of agriculture and working trees to
create sustainable farming systems.
Silvopasture
Alley cropping
Windbreaks
Forest farming
Riparian buffer
Alley Cropping
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What is Alley Cropping?
… the planting of trees or shrubs in two or more sets of single or multiple rows with agronomic, horticultural, or forage crops cultivated in the alleys between the rows of woody plants.
Poplar and wheat
Alley Cropping
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Why use Alley Cropping?
Improves crop or forage quality and quantity by enhancing microclimate
Improves crop diversity, and economic returns
Increases net carbon storage in the soil and vegetation
Improves utilization and recycling of soil nutrients
Decreases off site movement of nutrients or chemicals
Provides or enhances wildlife habitat
Alley Cropping
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Benefits
Improves crop or forage quality and quantity by enhancing microclimate
• Improves the microenvironment to increase crop yields
• Protects alleyway crops from physical damage from winds or from soil particles blown into the plant tissue which bruises or degrades quality Black walnut with
hay
Alley Cropping
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Benefits
Improve Crop Diversity, and Economic Returns • Allows production of
annual crops for needed cash flow while at the same time growing longer term woody investments.
• Allows two annual crops to be grown on the same acreage such as a forage or row crop and nut or fruit crops
• Allows crop diversity which reduces risk Elderberry
Taro
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Benefits
Increases net carbon storage in the soil and vegetation
• Roots, crop residue, leaves and forage add to soil carbon
• Tree component adds to total potential carbon stored on site through long term sequestration in the above ground and below ground biomass
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Benefits
Improves utilization and recycling of soil nutrients
• Tree roots are generally deeper than crop roots
• Nutrients and chemicals that pass through crop root zone are intercepted by trees
• Nutrients are utilized by the trees and recycled back to the soil surface by leaf drop
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Benefits
Decreases off site movement of nutrients or chemicals - surface
• Trees planted on contour trap sediment and residue along with attached nutrients and chemicals
• Infiltration increases in tree rows decreasing overland flow and associated movement of soluble nutrients and chemicals off site
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Benefits
Decreases off site movement of nutrients or chemicals - subsurface
• Tree roots are generally deeper than crop roots
• Nutrients and chemicals that pass through crop root zone are intercepted by the woody plants
• Nutrients are utilized by the woody plants and recycled back to the soil surface
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Benefits
Provides or enhances wildlife habitat
• Provides food and cover through a diversity of plants
• Creates vertical habitat structure
• Improves pollinator foraging and nesting habitat
• Builds travel corridors for wildlife movement to connect to other food, cover, or water resources
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Alley Cropping - Issues
Involves intensive management
May remove land from annual production, depending on the tree crop
May complicate herbicide application
Requires marketing infrastructure for woody plant products
Coffee under macadamia trees
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Design Considerations
Light requirement for the crop or forage to be grown in the alley way
Root Competition between cropsType and size of the equipment being used
Tree Species
Shade Produced
Root Competition
Black walnut
Low Low
Pecan Medium Medium
Oak High Medium
Pine High Medium-high
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Tree or Shrub Criteria for Alley Cropping
MarketableYields annual or periodic commercial
product (wood, nuts or fruit)Appropriate shade for the alley cropMinimal roots at soil surfaceAdapted to site and soils Foliage residue does not interfere with alley
crop Growth requirements complement alley
crop
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Potential Trees
WalnutPecanChestnut PinePoplar
Tropical:CoffeeCoconut PalmLeucaena EucalyptusPapaya
Coffee
Leucaena
Walnut
Pine
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Potential Shrubs
Hazelnut/filbert, (nuts)Willow, dogwood (decorative florals)Chokecherry, highbush cranberry,
currant, elderberry, saskatoon, gooseberry, sugar apple, pomegranate (fruits)
Hazelnut
Willow
SaskatoonPomegranate
Sugar apple
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Potential Alley Way Crops
Row/cereal crops (corn, soybeans, milo, wheat)
Forage crops (legumes, grasses)
Specialty crops (vegetables, fruits, flowers, medicinals)
Biomass (energy, feedstock)
Pecans and hay
Biomass alley crop
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For Additional Information
Where is there more information on alley cropping?
A number of web sites are available to provide more detailed information on alley cropping systems. Here are a few :
USDA National Agroforestry Center http://www.unl.edu/nac/alleycropping.htm
The Center for Agroforestry http://www.centerforagroforestry.org/practices/ac.php
Association for Temperate Agroforestry http://www.aftaweb.org/alley_cropping.php
The Overstoryhttp://agroforestry.net/overstory/osprev.html
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Summary – Alley Cropping
Increased crop productionEnhanced economic diversificationImproved crop protectionBetter nutrient utilization Improved soil and water quality
Pine and cotton
Lettuce intercrop followed with pumpkins
Coconuts and
beans
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Acknowledgements
This presentation was developed by the USDA National Agroforestry Center (NAC), Lincoln NE.
NAC is a USDA partnership between the U.S. Forest Service and the Natural Resources Conservation Service.
"The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) prohibits discrimination in all its programs and activities on the basis of race, color, national origin, age, disability, and where applicable, sex, marital status, familial status, parental status, religion, sexual orientation, genetic information, political beliefs, reprisal, or because all or part of an individual’s income is derived from any public assistance. (Not all prohibited bases apply to all programs.) Persons with disabilities who require alternative means for communication of program information (Braille, large print, audiotape, etc.) should contact USDA’s TARGET Center at 202-720-2600 (voice and TDD).
To file a complaint of discrimination, write USDA, Director, Office of Civil Rights, Room 326-W, Whitten Building, 1400 Independence Avenue, SW, Washington, D.C. 20250-9410 or call (202) 720-5964 (voice and TDD). USDA is an equal opportunity provider and employer."
"The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) prohibits discrimination in all its programs and activities on the basis of race, color, national origin, age, disability, and where applicable, sex, marital status, familial status, parental status, religion, sexual orientation, genetic information, political beliefs, reprisal, or because all or part of an individual’s income is derived from any public assistance. (Not all prohibited bases apply to all programs.) Persons with disabilities who require alternative means for communication of program information (Braille, large print, audiotape, etc.) should contact USDA’s TARGET Center at 202-720-2600 (voice and TDD).
To file a complaint of discrimination, write USDA, Director, Office of Civil Rights, Room 326-W, Whitten Building, 1400 Independence Avenue, SW, Washington, D.C. 20250-9410 or call (202) 720-5964 (voice and TDD). USDA is an equal opportunity provider and employer."
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