With the increasing need to restore former agricultural lands in the tropics, it is critical to explore
different models for how to restore these lands. The authors propose that agro-successional restoration, which they define as incorporating a range of agroecology and agroforestry
techniques as a transition phase early in forest restoration, could be
used more widely to overcome socioeconomic and ecological obstacles to
restoring these lands. Over centuries, farmers and scientists have
developed various agroforestry techniques that aim to cultivate crops
and trees, in a range of crop types, time periods of cultivation (a few
years to several decades), and complexity of species planted. The
management practices used, such as weeding and
increasing soil fertility, parallel those used in many forest
restoration efforts. Benefits of the agro-successional model
include extending the management period of restoration, offsetting some
management costs, providing food security for small landholders, and
involving small landholders.
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