Vol. 11, Issue 3 (2022)

Author(s):
Supriya K Salimath, Deepthi Dechamma NL, Clara Manasa PA, Maheshwarappa V, Ramakrishna Hegde and Ashwath MN

Abstract:
Agroforestry is a land management system that increases production and ecological stability and contributes to the sustainable development of the agroecosystem. It addresses the nation’s land stewardship needs by converting degraded lands, protecting sensitive lands and diversifying farm production systems. Deliberate planting of the tree, shrub and herbaceous legumes in rotation with food crops has become a central and integral part of land management practices for replenishing soil fertility in nutrient-depleted small-scale farms. However, owing to the limitation of site for the crop growth in terms of growth resources, efficient utilization of resources is a key for the success of agroforestry systems. The productivity of any vegetation system mainly depends on biomass production and carbon storage potential in their different components, which are affected by nature, age of plant and other climatic, edaphic, topographic and biotic factors. In this context, the biomass production and allocation in agroforestry systems need to be understood to manipulate them for higher gain. Hence, an attempt has been made in this review to explore productivity components of agroforestry and the factors influencing biomass production and allocation. With this knowledge, managers can apply suitable silviculture and management practices to manipulate the biomass production within the system and allocate them as beneficial to the farmer both economically and ecologically.