Rural Development Forestry Network (original) (raw)
Related papers
Documentation of Agroforestry Farming Systems in Ifugao , Philippines
2015
Ifugaos have practiced agriculture for centuries despite their relatively mountainous land. They adapted their agro-forestry farming system to the environment and were able to practice both wet and dry agriculture. They laboured to develop the watershed or the forested areas because they know that they are interdependent to each other. However, because of the topographical differences within the province, like in Alfonso Lista, Lamut, and Lagawe wherein there are largely flat lands while the wider chunk of the province is mountainous, there is a slight to almost entirely different agro-forestry system being practiced by the farmers. Aside from the physical condition of the land, the existence of sub-tribes of Ifugaos with diverse cultures gives rise to different agro-forestry farming systems in the province aside from the two indigenous systems – the kaingin or slash and burn farming and terracing to establish rice terraces. The kind of agro-forestry farming system being practiced i...
The Ifugao agricultural landscapes: Agro-cultural complexes and the intensification debate
Journal of Southeast Asian Studies, 2012
Most models that explain the development of agricultural systems suggest evolutionary relationships between extensive (e.g. swidden cultivation) and intensive (e.g. wet-rice cultivation) forms of production. Recent information from highland Southeast Asian farming systems questions the validity of this assumption. As a case in point, this article presents the results of a combined ethnographic study and spatial analysis of the Ifugao agricultural system in the northern Philippines, focusing in particular on the relationships among intensive rice terracing, swidden farming and agroforestry (Ifugao forest management). Informed by the Ifugao example, this article suggests that extensive and intensive systems are often concurrent and compatible components of a broad-spectrum lifeway.
2011
The remaining forests of the Philippine uplands are under great pressure. While an increasing number of upland dwellers depends on agriculture as their only source of income, the government simultaneously aims to conserve the remaining forest. Complex and often conflicting regulations on land-use rights are further complicating this situation. This study examines the extent to which agroforestry can be a sustainable land use option and thus help to resolve this conflict between conservation and income generation aims. A total of 100 agroforestry parcels in the provinces of Southern Leyte and Misamis Oriental were analyzed and stratified according to their main crop; and a combination of primary data from interviews with 107 farmers, expert opinion, and secondary literature sources was used to evaluate the sustainability of six different types of agroforestry systems. The study revealed that timber tree based agroforestry systems are most sustainable, followed by rubber-based and coffee-based systems. However, timber tree based agroforestry in the Philippine uplands has drawbacks; farmers often struggle to get the legal permits required to harvest trees. In addition, once trees are harvested, farmers often opt to replant annual crops due to low prices for wood. In terms of income generation rubber-based agroforestry achieved by far the best results. But independent of the type of agroforestry system, good results on socioeconomic indicators are not due to the crop selection alone. A major contribution is good management practices during the transition period (i.e., the time from planting to the first harvest of perennial crops). Availability of training and extension services for the transition period are decisive factors contributing to this success. In contrast, low scores on socio-economic indicators can be attributed to inadequate farm management practices (e.g., fertilizing, pruning, rejuvenating, pest control), to the use of low-quality seedlings, and to the old age of respective perennial plants. With only a few exceptions, the study results confirm that farmers without secure and long-term land tenure earn less income. However, the assumption that there is a trade-off between economic benefits and environmental services could not be confirmed. Based on these results, a set of recommendations is provided.