Selection of native trees for intercropping with coffee in the Atlantic Rainforest biome

A challenge in establishing agroforestry systems is ensuring that farmers are interested in the tree species, and are aware of how to adequately manage these species. This challenge was tackled in the Atlantic Rainforest biome (Brazil), where a participatory trial with agroforestry coffee systems was carried out, followed by a participatory systematisation of the farmers experiences. Our objective was to identify the main tree species used by farmers as well as their criteria for selecting or rejecting tree species. Furthermore, we aimed to present a specific inventory of trees of the Leguminosae family. In order to collect the data, we reviewed the bibliography of the participatory trial, visited and interviewed the farmers and organised workshops with them. The main farmers’ criteria for selecting tree species were compatibility with coffee, amount of biomass, production and the labour needed for tree management. The farmers listed 85 tree species; we recorded 28 tree species of the Leguminosae family. Most trees were either native to the biome or exotic fruit trees. In order to design and manage complex agroforestry systems, family farmers need sufficient knowledge and autonomy, which can be reinforced when a participatory methodology is used for developing on-farm agroforestry systems. In the case presented, the farmers learned how to manage, reclaim and conserve their land. The diversification of production, especially with fruit, contributes to food security and to a low cost/benefit ratio of agroforestry systems. The investigated agroforestry systems showed potential to restore the degraded landscape of the Atlantic Rainforest biome.     

Decomposition and nutrient release in leaves of Atlantic Rainforest tree species used in agroforestry systems

Aiming to support the use of native species from the Atlantic Rainforest in local agroforestry systems, we analysed chemical and biochemical components related to leaf decomposition of Inga subnuda, Senna macranthera, Erythrina verna, Luehea grandiflora, Zeyheria tuberculosa, Aegiphila sellowiana, and Persea americana. These tree species are native (except for P. americana) and commonly used in agroforestry systems in the Atlantic Rainforest. For the three first species (Fabaceae), we also analysed the remaining dry matter and released nutrients from leaves, using litter bags, and biological nitrogen fixation, using Bidens pilosa and Brachiaria plantaginea as references of non-N₂-fixing plants. Leaves from I. subnuda, L. grandiflora, and P. americana had a lower decomposition rate than the other species, exhibiting negative correlations with lignin/N and (lignin+polyphenol)/N ratios. The percentages of remaining dry matter after 1 year were 69 % (I. subnuda), 26 % (S. macranthera) and 16 % (E. verna). Higher nutrient release was found in decreasing order from residues of E. verna, S. macranthera, and I. subnuda. The percentages of nitrogen fixation were 22.6 % (E. verna), 20.6 % (I. subnuda) and 16.6 % (S. macranthera). Diversification of tree species in agroforestry systems allows for input of diversified organic material and can contribute to maintaining and improving soil functions resulting in improvements of soil quality.     

Palmito sustainability and economics in Brazil''s Atlantic coastal forest

A number of palm species produce edible palm hearts, or ‘palmito’ as it is called in Brazil. Palmito jussara (Euterpe edulis) is a favorite for both international export and Brazilian consumption. Except on private lands, extraction of wild jussara palmito (or just ‘palmito’) from Brazil's Atlantic Coastal Forest is illegal. Yet palmito extraction in this forest continues on a large scale because of profitability for palmito processors and merchants, ineffective government intervention, and relatively attractive earnings for low-income palmito harvesters (‘palmiteiros’).

Because most palmito cutting and transport is clandestine, virtually no information is available on the financial returns from palmito extraction. However, the question is central for discussions of sustainability in unmanaged vs. managed agro-ecological systems. While reliable data are impossible to obtain, we interviewed several individuals in Brazil in order to formulate scenarios of palmito production, prices, and costs. We simulate the uncertainties in assumptions and data to generate a range of estimates on the net value of palmito management alternatives.

Financial net present value (NPV) of palmito extraction is highly sensitive to the time value of money (discount rate). ‘Managed’ extraction is more attractive than unmanaged extraction at low discount rates. As the discount rate increases, the attractiveness of sustainable palmito management decreases. All scenarios suggest that palmito cutting is very lucrative, explaining current institutional problems in controlling its commerce.     

Modeling landscape dynamics in an Atlantic Rainforest region: Implications for conservation

The dynamics of the Atlantic Rainforest loss and recovery are still not fully understood despite its long history of human occupation. In this study, we investigated changes in an Atlantic Rainforest region due to major biophysical and human proximate causes. First, we modeled land-cover and land-use changes from 1962 to 2000, including deforestation and forest regrowth, and thereby simulated future landscape trajectories to assess their possible effects on the conservation of forest species of the Ibiúna Plateau, a region located in Southeastern Brazil within the Atlantic Rainforest biome. We modeled four scenarios (status quo, random, lawenforcement, and land-use intensification) and simulated their resulting landscape trajectories for the year 2019 using DINAMICA. The landscape dynamics in the study region were particularly intense. During the first period of 1962–1981, the rate of forest regrowth (3% year⁻¹) was greater than the rate of deforestation (2% year⁻¹), whereas in the latter period of 1981–2000, increasing urbanization and the spreading of rural establishments resulted in more deforestation (2.9% year⁻¹) than regrowth (1% year⁻¹). These dynamics imprinted a heterogeneous landscape, leading to the predominance of progressively younger secondary forests with increasingly less capacity of hosting sensitive forest species. The influence of proximate causes on the dynamics of deforestation and forest regrowth showed consistent patterns, such as higher forest regrowth rates near rivers, on steep slopes and far from dirt roads, whereas losses in young secondary vegetation and forest were far from rivers, on gentle slopes and near urban areas. Of the modeled scenarios, only the law enforcement scenario may lead to the recovery of a network of interconnected forest patches, suggesting that simply the enforcement of current forest laws, which prohibit deforestation on unsuitable agricultural areas and along river margins and establish a minimum of 20% of forest remnant per rural property, may effectively favor forest species conservation in the short term (two decades) without the need of any forest restoration effort.     

Social and economic challenges in the development of complex farming systems

The fundamental challenge in developing a new farming system is to have it adopted and maintained by farmers. The difficulty of achieving widespread adoption is increased if the new farming system is complex and/or radically different to current farming practice. This paper is a review of these issues with a focus on farming systems based on mimicry of natural ecosystems. It is proposed that there are four conditions which are necessary for an individual farmer to adopt an innovative farming-system: awareness of the innovation, perception that it is feasible to trial the innovation, perception that the innovation is worth trialing, and perception that the innovation promotes the farmer's objectives. Challenges involved in meeting each of these conditions are discussed. It is concluded that the most important challenges in developed countries are: (a) developing a farming system that is in fact more profitable than current practice; (b) assessing whether a system is in fact more profitable than current practice; and (c) overcoming the problem of deep uncertainty about the technology. In developing countries one must add the additional challenges of (d) high interest rates/high discount rates; and (e) insecure or inequitable land tenure. This revised version was published online in June 2006 with corrections to the Cover Date.     

Adoption of mucuna in the farming systems of northern Honduras

In many parts of Central America long fallow periods are no longer feasible due to increasing land pressures. Farmers in northern Honduras have developed and diffused from farmer-to-farmer a maize cropping system using velvetbean (Mucuna spp.) as a short-term fallow. High total annual rainfall in a bimodal distribution is favorable to the system because it allows the completion of two rainfed cropping cycles annually. The first season is dedicated to the production of the mucuna crop and the second season is dedicated to maize. Soil pH and exchangeable Ca were not reduced during a 15-year period of continuous mucuna use. Soil organic matter, infiltration, and porosity increased with continuous mucuna use. Maize yields in fields with continuous rotation of mucuna were on average double those obtained without mucuna. The mucuna system was more profitable than the existing alternative bush-fallow system due to higher returns to land and labor resulting from higher yields, lower weeding and land preparation costs, and reduced risk of drought stress. The relative profitability of the mucuna system was also enhanced by seasonally high maize prices during the second season when maize is harvested in the mucuna system. Relatively easy access to land through inexpensive land ownership and land rental markets has made it possible for even small-scale farmers to dedicate land to the mucuna system. Land-use intensity is increasing in the region, however, as land is converted to pastures for cattle production. The opportunity costs of keeping land in the mucuna system, while also accessing land for first-season maize and other crops, are also increasing. These experiences remind us that a viable livelihood is the primary factor in farmers' decision making about adoption particular components of farming systems.This revised version was published online in November 2005 with corrections to the Cover Date.     

Agroforestry farming systems in the homesteads of Kerala,southern India

Kerala State on the southwestern coast of India in the tropical humid zone has a predominantly agricultural economy, a very high density of population and therefore high pressure on cultivable land. The farmers there undertake cultivation of an array of crops — tree crops, plantation crops, seasonals and biennials — all in intimate mixtures on the same piece of land around the homesteads. Farm animals and poultry and sometimes fisheries also are essential components of the system. The close association of agricultural crops, tree crops and animals in the homesteads represents an excellent example of sustainable and productive agroforestry homegardens. Optimum utilization of available resources of land, solar energy and technological inputs and an efficient recycling of farm wastes are important characteristics of the systems. This paper attempts to describe and evaluate the systems' stability, productivity and sustainability, and identify its merits and constraints as well as research needs.     

Traditional farming systems of south-central Chile,with special emphasis on agroforestry

The paper describes some general structural and functional characteristics of actual Chilean farming systems managed by small farmers (campesinos) with traditional technologies. Campesino farming systems can be divided into two major groups: (a) small-scale (no more than 1 ha) intensive systems with a wide array of tree annual crops and 3–4 animal species per farm; and (b) extensive semi-commercial systems (5–12 ha) composed of diversified combinations of crops and animals designed to increase production, producing a marketable surplus for the local community. In most systems campesinos include trees (whether for food, fodder, wood, construction materials, fuel, etc.) as integrated elements of farm management constituting agro-forestry systems. Understanding these traditional farming systems, and the rationales behind their management is an important first step towards the ultimate development of appropriate agricultural technologies attuned to the ecological and socio-economic circumstances of the Chilean campesinos.     

Imperata management strategies used in smallholder rubber-based farming systems

A large proportion of global natural rubber production takes place in Southeast Asia. The majority of this rubber is produced by smallholders. Thailand, Indonesia and Malaysia are the three principal countries involved. In Malaysia and Indonesia the smallholder sector accounts for 72% and 84% of total rubber production respectively. In other countries rubber plays a significant role on a more local basis. Imperata is a serious problem for the smallholder rubber farmer in most of Southeast Asia in three respects: the high cost (labour and/or capital) of opening Imperata-infested land, its competitive effect on rubber and annual intercrops, and the fire hazard that it poses during the dry season as a major source of combustible material. The costs of Imperata to smallholders are substantial in terms of a direct loss through fire and revenue foregone or delayed as a result of competition. Most smallholders intercrop their rubber during the first 1–3 years after planting it, and during this period Imperata is reasonably well controlled. Intercropping is only feasible for a limited period because of limited soil fertility and/or the shading effect of the rubber trees. After intercropping, Imperata tends to establish itself for a few years until it too is shaded out by the rubber. This is the problem period, during which farmers practise only limited weed management, if any.A large amount of research has been done on methods of controlling Imperata, but the recommended methods have been generally spurned by smallholders unless they have been given subsidies to apply them. This paper describes the precise nature of the Imperata problem, with reference to some of the smallholder rubber-based farming systems within Southeast Asia; the different Imperata control strategies currently practised in these farming systems; and some of the constraints on the adoption of currently and recently recommended practices. It then proposes a ten-point agenda for research on Imperata control, including two ways in which current research programmes could be usefully reoriented: first, they need to take greater account of smallholder farming systems and constraints; and second they should shift their emphasis from single-method to integrated control systems.     

A comparison of agrisilvicultural systems with plantation forestry in the Atlantic Lowlands of Costa Rica

Survival and growth data (ages 0–5 years) are presented for two timber species (Acacia mangium, Cordia alliodora) planted in monocultures or in association with a sequence of agricultural cropsZea mays, Zingiber officinale andEugenia stipitata (a fruit shrub) in the tropical humid Caribbean lowlands of Costa Rica. Average annual height and diameter growth rates were 3.2 m and 4.0 cm (C. alliodora), 3.5 m and 3.8 cm (A. mangium).C. alliodora associated with crops gave the greatest productivity with an average total stem volume increment of 19 m³ ha^–1 yr^–1. Root rot ofA. mangium (mainlyRosellinia sp.), leading to tree mortality, was greater in pure plots compared to associated plots.A. mangium can not be recommended for similar sites because of this problem.     

Use of multipurpose trees in hill farming systems in Western Nepal

A large number of multipurpose trees and shrubs are deliberately retained or incorporated on farms in the subsistence farming systems on the steep slopes in parts of Nepal. Woody perennials are maintained in contour strips across the slopes and around the fields. The contribution of these trees is the production of foder and firewood and their protective function in reducing the erosion hazards and thereby making crop production possible in those steep slopes where profitable cropping would otherwise be extremely difficult. Based on a case study in two villages of the Western Development Region, this paper presents some data on basic farm management aspects, production of crops and other components, etc. of the system. The performance of the system is assessed and its merits and weakness highlighted.Although the hill farming system extends over quite a large area and accounts for a large number of Nepal's population, it has not received any research attention nor benefitted by any scientific innovations. Improvement possibilities in terms of component technologies as well as farming systems including the incorporation of the several locally available medicinal plants are indicated.     

Distribution of mycorrhizal fungal spores in soils under agroforestry and monocultural coffee systems in Brazil

Deep-rooting trees in agroforestry systems may promote distribution of spores of arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi (AMF) at deeper soil levels. We investigated the vertical distribution of AMF spores in Oxisols under agroforestry and monocultural (unshaded) coffee systems in on-farm experiments (Brazil). The number of AMF spores was considered as an indicator of mycorrhiza incidence in soil. Spores were extracted from 0–1, 2–3, 5–7.5, 10–15, 20–30, 40–60 cm soil-depths in agroforestry and monocultural coffee systems, of three different age groups (young, medium-aged and old), using centrifugation methods, and counted. Fine roots were collected and dry-weighed from 0–30 cm in young and old systems and from several depths in medium-aged systems. Soils were characterised with respect to texture, pH, organic matter, calcium, magnesium, phosphorus and potassium. Agroforestry had a higher percentage of spores (12–21% of the total number of spores) and roots (on average 1.5 g L^–1 soil) in deeper layers (20–60 cm), and a lower percentage (79–88%) closer to the surface (0–15 cm) than the monocultural fields (respectively 3–12%, 0.6 g L^–1 soil and 88–97%). Greater numbers of spores in the deeper soil layers may be explained by greater amounts of roots and may be an indicator of greater incidence of mycorrhiza in agroforestry than in monocultural coffee systems. Greater mycorrhizal incidence at deeper soil layers in the agroforestry system may change the dynamics of phosphorus cycling in soil, making this nutrient more available to plants.This revised version was published online in November 2005 with corrections to the Cover Date.     

Growth and yield of coffee plants in agroforestry and monoculture systems in Minas Gerais, Brazil

This research compared coffee plants (Coffea arabica L.) grown in an agroforestry and monoculture systems. Data were collected during two years, on vegetative growth, reproductive development, nutritional status and yield of coffee, besides monitoring air temperature and the tree growth. All trees in agroforestry system increased in growth, resulting in a reduction in the magnitude of the diurnal temperature variation and also maximum temperature. Coffee plants in agroforestry system had less branch growth and leaf production, more persistent and larger leaves, and presented earlier flowering, with a smaller number of productive nodes and flower buds, leading to smaller berry yield than plants in monoculture system. In both systems, the coffee plants showed adequate leaf nutrient levels, except for P and K. The yield of 2443 kg ha^-1 of coffee from the monoculture was greater than 515 kg ha^-1 of coffee from the agroforestry system.     

Composted shrub-prunings and other organic manures for smallholder farming systems in southern Rwanda

Organic manures are the primary source of crop nutrients in many African farming systems. The quantity of such materials that are available on farms and their quality are therefore important issues, especially in countries with limited land resources, such as Rwanda. In this study, different types of compost (including composted shrub-prunings) were compared with farmyard manure (FYM) and green manure (Calliandra calothyrsus) using beans (Phaseolus vulgaris) as test crops. The study confirmed the farmers’ general opinion that FYM has high manurial value for crop yields. Composts with P- and Ca-rich Tithonia diversifolia prunings were of similar quality as FYM or dung composts and had a higher fertilizer value than Calliandra ‘green manure’ (biomass transfer). However, the farmers’ perception of trees and shrubs as biomass and nutrient sources is still very low in Rwanda. This revised version was published online in August 2006 with corrections to the Cover Date.     

Designing pest-suppressive multistrata perennial crop systems: shade-grown coffee in Central America

During most of its cultivation in Central America, coffee (Coffea arabica L.) suffered few serious pest problems. However, over the past three decades, three factors contributed to significantly increase pest levels and losses: the recent introduction of new pests; more favorable conditions for existing pests, diseases, and weeds due to lower shade levels; and secondary pest problems caused by pesticide use. The strategy of maximizing coffee production with pest control dominated by synthetic pesticides has not only increased yields substantially, but also production costs, pesticide resistance, and both human health and environmental risks. An analysis of the response of the food web in coffee plantations to varying levels of light and humidity associated with different shade levels provides the basis for identifying the optimum shade conditions which minimize the entire pest complex and maximize the effects of beneficial microflora and fauna acting against it. These optimum shade conditions for pest suppression differ with climate, altitude, and soils. The selection of tree species and associations, density and spatial arrangement, as well as shade management regimes are critical decisions for shade strata design. Site-specific knowledge of the seasonal food web dynamics permits growers to determine the appropriate seasonal shade management in order to further suppress pest levels. For example in a low-elevation dry coffee zone, 35 to 65% shade promotes leaf retention in the dry season and reduces Cercospora coffeicola, weeds, and Planococcus citri; at the same time, it increases the effectiveness of microbial and parasitic organisms without contributing to increased Hemileia vastatrix levels or reducing yields. In these conditions, shade should be at a maximum early in the dry season and at a minimum by the middle of the rainy season. Further research is needed on: the effects of individual tree species on the food web; the role of canopy architecture for coffee vigor, photosynthesis, leaf drying, pest susceptibility, and pruning regimes; and on simple observation methods and decision criteria for farmer management of tree-coffee-food web interactions. This revised version was published online in June 2006 with corrections to the Cover Date.     

Phosphorus pools in Oxisols under shaded and unshaded coffee systems on farmers' fields in Brazil

Phosphorus (P) is a primary limiting nutrient for crop production in weathered tropical soils. The deficiency is mainly caused by sorption of phosphate onto Al- and Fe- (hydr)oxides. We hypothesise that the distribution of soil P among various pools is influenced by land use. Our objective was to characterise the soil inorganic (Pi) and organic P (Po) pools and to compare the various pools at different depths in agroforestry (shaded) and monocultural (unshaded) coffee cultivation systems. The study was carried out in the Atlantic Coastal Rainforest domain, Brazil, with Oxisols as the dominant soil type. Soils were collected from four farmers' coffee (Coffea arabica L.) fields, two agroforestry and two monocultural systems. Three profiles were sampled per field, at depths of 2–3, 10–15 and 40–60 cm. A simplified sequential P fractionation was carried out, using resin, 0.5 M NaHCO₃, 0.1 M NaOH, 1 M HCl and concentrated HCl as extractants. Sum-P (resin, NaHCO₃ NaOH, 1 M HCl and concentrated HCl) ranged from 370 to 830 mg kg^–1. Concentrated HCl extracted the largest portion (74%), followed by NaOH (22.5%). Labile (sum of resin, NaHCO₃ and NaOH) P ranged from 13 to 40% of Sum-P. The major part (62%) of the labile fraction was Po. In the agroforestry fields, the amount of Po decreased less with depth and the percentage of Po in labile pools was higher than in monocultural fields. This suggests that agroforestry maintains larger fractions of P available to agricultural crops by influencing the dynamics of P through the conversion of part of the Pi into Po, thereby reducing P losses to the unavailable pools.This revised version was published online in November 2005 with corrections to the Cover Date.     

Factors affecting the dynamics of tree diversity in agroforestry parklands of cereal and cotton farming systems in Burkina Faso

Despite their socio-economic and ecological role, many studies have shown that the parklands are degrading very rapidly. Therefore, there is a need to undertake restoration actions for both production and environmental services. To do so, there is a need to identify factors that are affecting the dynamics of parkland systems. The present study aimed at characterizing and quantifying tree diversity of parkland systems taking into consideration the household’s wealth status, land uses, market access and the type of farming system (cereal based on the “Plateau Central” and cotton based in “Boucle du Mouhoun”). Six villages (Kienfangué, Ipelcé, and Kuizili with easy access to the market and, Karang-Tanghin, Nionsna and Targho with poor access to the market) in the “Plateau Central” and six villages (Bondoukuy, Ouahabou and Yaho with easy access to the market and, Dora, Fakéna and Mamou with poor access to the market) in “Boucle du Mouhoun” were studied. In each village, the Participatory Analysis of Poverty and Livelihood Dynamics method was used by rural farmers to rank farmer households of their communities and that gave three groups of wealth status that are poor, fairly well-off and well-off. Five households representing each of the three wealth groups in each village, giving a total of 15 households per village, were randomly selected by wealth group. Tree/shrub inventories were conducted in all land use types (house fields, village fields and bush fields) of the 180 selected households for the 12 studied sites. The number of species in the different land use types ranged from 96 to 102, but the majority of species were represented by less than 10 individuals. This indicates the selection effect made by the farmers to the parklands. Land use and farming system showed a clear effect on tree diversity in parklands. The effect of accessibility to market was evident in some cases whereas wealth status did not show any effect. Despite the statistical significant effect of farming system and land use type, the ANOVA models accounted for relatively little variation, indicating that other factors may contribute to tree diversity in parkland systems. The most threatened species were Adansonia digitata, Afzelia africana, Bombax costatum, Celtis integrifolia, Ficus asperifolia, Ficus iteophylla, Lannea velutina, and Parkia biglobosa. These species were represented in the largest diameter class (≥80 cm) or showed very few individuals in the different diameter classes. Due to the increasing degradation of the parklands, a domestication and conservation strategy of key threatened species needs to be developed and implemented with the participation of local communities.     

The effects of management and plant diversity on carbon storage in coffee agroforestry systems in Costa Rica

Agroforestry systems can mitigate greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, conserve biodiversity and generate income. Whereas the provision of ecosystem services by agroforestry is well documented, the functional relationships between species composition, diversity and carbon (C)-storage remain uncertain. This study aimed to analyze the effects of management (conventional vs. organic), woody plant diversity and plant composition on aboveground and belowground C-storage in coffee agroforestry systems. It was expected that organic farms would store more C, and that an increase in plant diversity would enhance C-storage due to complementarity effects. Additionally, it was expected that steep slopes decrease C-storage as a result of topsoil erosion. Woody plants were identified on 1?ha plots within 14 coffee farms (7 conventional and 7 organic). C-stocks in trees, coffee plants and roots were estimated from allometric equations. C-stocks in litter and topsoil (0?C25?cm) were estimated by sampling. On average, farms stored 93?±?29?Mg?C?ha^?1. Soil organic carbon accounted for 69?% of total C. Total C-stocks were 43?% higher on organic farms than on conventional farms (P?<?0.05). Conventional and organic farms differed in vegetation structure, but not in species diversity. It was found that the combined effect of farm type, species richness, species composition and slope explained 83?% of the variation in total C-storage across all farms (P?<?0.001). Coffee agroforestry in general and organic farms in particular may contribute to GHG mitigation and biodiversity conservation in a synergistic manner which has implications for the effective allocation of resources for conservation and climate change mitigation strategies in the agricultural sector.     

Research methods for multistrata agroforestry systems with coffee and cacao: recommendations from two decades of research at CATIE

This paper reviews the research themes and methodologies used by CATIE in agroforestry research with shade trees over coffee (Coffea arabica) and cacao (Theobroma cacao) during the past 20 years. Initially research focused on characterization and production studies (of crop and timber including border areas) of traditional systems using temporary and permanent sample plots on private farms. The assessment area of traditional shade-coffee (or cacao) systems should be the whole plot, including the border areas, and not some subjectively selected central area which supposedly represents unit area productivity. Uncontrolled crop, tree, and management heterogeneity limited extrapolation of early on-farm research results to other farmers' fields. Replicated case studies of best bet technologies (traditional or experimental) on different farms are often preferable to the use of formal experimental designs. On-station research included the use of systematic spacing designs to test extreme shade tree density treatments of coffee. Most nutrient cycling studies were also carried out on-station, using service and timber shade species over coffee and cacao to evaluate the ability of these agroforestry systems to maintain nutrient reserves and diversify production. Plot size (even 36 × 36 m) was limiting for long term research because of inter-plot interference, both below- and above ground, when using fast growing, tall timber trees as shade. These experiences suggest a minimum plot size of 2,500 m². Individual tree designs and tree-crop interface studies (e.g. regression analysis of data taken along transects) are promising experimental/sampling approaches that need further development. The principal research thrusts proposed for the next five years are bio-physical process research on coffee responses to shade and competition with trees (growth, carbon allocation, phenology, disease-pest tolerance, yields and coffee quality effects) and socioeconomic analyses of both traditional and new or improved shade – coffee combinations vs. monocultures. This revised version was published online in June 2006 with corrections to the Cover Date.     

Survival and growth of rattan intercropped with coffee and cacao in the agroforests of Indonesia

This study investigated the intercropping of rattan, an important non-timber forest product, in coffee and cacao agroforests in Sulawesi, Indonesia. The viability of producing seedlings from seeds and vegetative cuttings with the large-diameter rattan, Calamus zollingeri Beccari, and initial seedling survival, growth and response to light and soil drainage were investigated in village nurseries and perennial farms. Over 96% of seeds and 61% of vegetative cuttings were raised to transplanting size (25 cm with two to three leaves) over 20 months. One hundred C. zollingeri seedlings produced from cuttings were transplanted into each of three coffee or cacao farms and one primary forest site and exhibited an overall survival rate of 96%, 12.7 cm of height growth and the production of 0.8 new leaves per plant after eight months. No significant differences were observed between the four sites with respect to seedling survival, growth, or leaf production and no significant differences were found between seedling survival, growth or leaf production and light intensity (based on multiple PAR measurements). However, poorly drained sites exhibited significantly reduced C. zollingeri seedling survival and growth. The cultivation of C. zollingeri rattan in coffee and cacao agroforests represents a potential means of intensifying and diversifying perennial cash crop farming systems.This revised version was published online in November 2005 with corrections to the Cover Date.