Institut für Tropische Agrarwissenschaften (Hans-Ruthenberg-Institut)

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Browsing Institut für Tropische Agrarwissenschaften (Hans-Ruthenberg-Institut) by Journal "Agroforestry systems"

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    The ecological and socioeconomic sustainability of organic agroforestry: a systematic review
    (2024) Aaron, Willmott; Amritbir, Riar; Stephane, Saj; Laura, Armengot; Harun, Cicek; Milka, Kiboi; Akanksha, Singh; Ingo, Grass; Marc, Cotter
    Organic agriculture and agroforestry are two agroecological approaches that have been proposed to address the many negative externalities of intensive agriculture.However, their comparative efficiency in promoting sustainability when combined is unclear, as they are typically studied in isolation. To address this we conducted a systematic review of comparative studies addressing organic versus conventional agroforestry and their monocultural counterparts. We conducted a content analysis resulting in an impact matrix utilizing seven broad categories encompassing ecological, socioeconomic and environmental aspects of sustainability. By analyzing these impact categories separately, it is possible to highlight the distinct advantages and issues in organic agroforestry systems over alternative systems, as well as the potential for multifunctionality. Research in organic agroforestry is strongly biased towards South American Cocoa and Coffee, but, in spite of this, evidence thus far suggests that organic agroforestry has many advantages across all categories studied and few drawbacks; the main one being yield of single crops. A large number of comparisons yielded neutral outcomes, suggesting that there are a limited set of trade-offs associated with organic agroforestry, many of which may be attenuated by altering management and market conditions. We conclude by highlighting key research areas in organic agroforestry which need to be addressed including: the differing ways of quantifying yield, staple crops and expanding the geographic range of studies.
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    Guidelines for improved quantification and reporting of carbon stocks and additional carbon storage in agroforestry systems
    (2025) Cardinael, Rémi; Cadisch, Georg; Dupraz, Christian; Lojka, Bohdan; Oelbermann, Maren
    The number of scientific publications related to biomass carbon or soil organic carbon under various land management practices has globally and dramatically increased during the last two decades, the same applies to the peer reviewed Agroforestry Systems journal. However, the quality of papers on carbon sequestration in agroforestry systems is very heterogeneous, and many studies do not fulfil simple requirements that would ensure the scientific value of these studies, resulting in high rates of rejections before and after review. The aim of this paper, co-authored by the Editor-in-Chief and Associate Editors of the Agroforestry Systems journal is to provide some basic guidelines to improve the quantification and reporting of carbon stocks and additional carbon storage in agroforestry systems, and to maximize manuscript acceptance. These guidelines are also of use for any other international peer-reviewed journal publishing studies on this topic. We also provide a checklist, for both authors and reviewers, of compulsory and recommended variables to be included before submission of an original study related to soil and/or biomass carbon stocks and sequestration in agroforestry systems.
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    Towards transdisciplinary identification of suitable woody perennials for resilient agro-silvopastoral systems in the Sudano-Sahelian zone of West Africa
    (2025) Roessler, Regina; Cicek, Harun; Cournac, Laurent; Gnissien, Moussa; Männle, Julia; Koomson, Eric; Founoune-Mboup, Hassna; Coulibaly, Kalifa; Diouf, Abdoul Aziz; Sanon, Hadja Oumou; Cadisch, Georg; Graefe, Sophie
    Parkland systems in the Sudano-Sahelian zone of West Africa are commonly perceived as a resilient agroforestry practice well adapted to the semi-arid climatic conditions of the region. However, there exist several knowledge gaps regarding the interplay between the different components of this agro-silvopastoral land use system. A literature review with subsequent meta-analysis was conducted to analyze the effects of woody perennials on soil, crops and livestock, for which our study found very context-specific responses. A scoring of tree and shrub species indicated a general trend of trade-off between positive impact on crops and livestock vs. impact on soil organic carbon content. The study further confirmed that Faidherbia albida (Del.) Chev. is one of the most promising parkland species, but also revealed that there are no multipurpose single species that should be promoted exclusively. The focus should rather shift to species mixtures that satisfy multiple human and environmental needs. The study also pointed out that information on the nutritional properties of the majority of browse species is particularly limited. Transdisciplinary modelling is suggested as a tool to assess the complex interactions between the different components that shape this agro-silvopastoral system at different scales.