Subject
COCOS NUCIFERA, CROPPING SYSTEM DYNAMIC, MELANESIAN AGRICULTURE, VEGETATION STRUCTURE ANALYSIS, [SDV]Life Sciences [q-bio]

Domains
Agriculture, Agroforesterie, Coco, Biologie

Description

Coconut (Cocos nucifera)-based agroforestry systems hold promise as a sustainableland use activity in the Melanesian islands, where food dependency on foreign sources andland shortages are increasing drarnatically. This chapter describes the dynamics of thesesmallholder production systems in the Malo Island of northern Vanuatu (Melanesia), where adual economy operates in which resources are dedicated to both subsistence and commercialproduction. The floristic elements found in the coconut plantations were typical of thosedescribed in the hurnid tropical homegardens elsewhere, with an average of 12 tree speciesper plot. Mean Shannon Weaver index was 1.57 with the vertical profile of vegetation havingone-to-five strata. Although the coconut palrns dorninate these production systems, in certaincases other trees may dominate it. Situations in coconut plots evolve throughout thedevelopment phase of the palms. Based on that, five types of smallholder coconut-basedagroforestry systems were recognized, which falls into two main evolutionary patterns: (1) aperennial occupation of the cultivated land by coconut trees, because of coconut replanting,and (2) a gradua1 return to tree fallow in which the coconut palms gradually disappearbecause of changes in the complex multistrata vegetation.

Keywords

Language
English (en-GB)

Creators
Lamanda, Nathalie, Malezieux, Eric, Martin, Philippe

Contributors
Fonctionnement et conduite des systèmes de culture tropicaux et méditerranéens (UMR SYSTEM) ; Centre de Coopération Internationale en Recherche Agronomique pour le Développement (Cirad)-Institut National de la Recherche Agronomique (INRA)-Centre international d'études supérieures en sciences agronomiques (Montpellier SupAgro)-Centre International de Hautes Etudes Agronomiques Méditerranéennes - Institut Agronomique Méditerranéen de Montpellier (CIHEAM-IAMM) ; Centre International de Hautes Études Agronomiques Méditerranéennes (CIHEAM)-Centre International de Hautes Études Agronomiques Méditerranéennes (CIHEAM)-Institut national d’études supérieures agronomiques de Montpellier (Montpellier SupAgro), Systèmes Agraires Développement : Activités, Produits, Territoires (SADAPT) ; Institut National de la Recherche Agronomique (INRA)-Institut National Agronomique Paris-Grignon (INA P-G), B. M. Kumar

Sources
Tropical homegardens : A time tested example of sustainable agroforestry, https://hal.science/hal-01829190, Tropical homegardens : A time tested example of sustainable agroforestry, Springer-Verlag, 2006, Advances in Agroforestry, 978-1-4020-4947-7, http://www.springer.com/life+sciences/agriculture/book/978-1-4020-4947-7

Relation

Coverage
Vanuatu, Melanesia

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