Lessons Learnt: agroforestry for ruminants in England
| Main Authors: | Jo Smith, Lindsay Whistance, Ambrogio Costanzo, Valentin Deremetz |
|---|---|
| Format: | Report publication-deliverable |
| Bahasa: | eng |
| Terbitan: |
, 2017
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| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: |
https://zenodo.org/record/2625713 |
Daftar Isi:
- In October 2017, Jo Smith and colleagues at the Organic Research Centre described the lessons learnt from their research on the effects of integrating willow and alder short rotation coppice on grassland on an organic farm in Southern England, as part of the EU FP7 project Agforward. The yields of woodchip from the willow, in January 2017 (after being coppiced in February 2016) were low, but there were good yields from the alder. The alder also had levels of digestible organic matter that compared favourably with typical livestock forages. In October 2016, the grass alleys between the alder and willow tree rows were ploughed and a break crop of organic oats was planted. There was little observed impact of the trees on the oats. Weed cover was higher in the tree row, with more perennial weeds in particular, compared to the crop alley. Earthworm abundances were also higher in the tree rows which form an undisturbed stable habitat. By contrast ground beetles occurred in greater abundances in the crop alleys.