What does agroforestry involve?

Agroforestry involves incorporating trees and shrubs into agricultural landscapes, which creates a multifunctional agricultural system. This approach combines the cultivation of crops or livestock with forestry practices, enhancing biodiversity, improving soil health, and providing various economic and ecological benefits. By integrating trees into farming systems, agroforestry promotes beneficial interactions between crops and trees, such as improved microclimate conditions, nutrient cycling, and habitat provision for wildlife. This practice also helps in carbon sequestration, making it an important strategy for sustainable land use.

In contrast, integrating livestock and crops focuses primarily on the interaction between animal husbandry and crop production but does not emphasize the role of trees and shrubs. Monoculture practices, which involve cultivating a single crop species over an area, do not align with the principles of diversification embodied in agroforestry. Similarly, the application of synthetic fertilizers refers to chemical inputs used to enhance crop growth but does not incorporate the ecological benefits derived from integrating trees and shrubs into agricultural practices.