Soil and microclimate amelioration of short rotation forestry-based agroforestry in Cuenca, Batangas, Philippines

Issue Date

1-2016

Abstract

Marginal uplands are among the highly vulnerable areas exposed to extreme environmental harsh conditions. To ensure the ecological stability of the watershed, rehabilitation strategies of these marginal degraded uplands is of urgency. Among the promising rehabilitation species is Jatropha curcas L. Jatropha is receiving heightened attention for its ability to grow on marginal land characterized by infertile soil and with limited rainfall. Similarly, the widely distributed oil-bearing woody Jatropha receives a lot of attention from Clean Development Mechanism project developers all over the tropical world. The study assessed the influence of the Short Rotation Forestry (SRF)-based agroforestry production systems on the microclimate and soil properties at marginal upland condition of Cuenca, Batangas, Philippines from February 2008 to February 2010. Jatropha curcas L. was planted in different spacing of 2 × 2 m and 3 × 3 m in the monoculture plantation and 2 × 2 m as an intercrop in the SRF-based agroforestry system. The SRF species were Acacia mangium, Pongamia pinnata and Eucalyptus deglupta. Production systems have significant influence on the change in topsoil organic matter, total nitrogen and available phosphorus, and the subsoil pH. Microclimate amelioration was observed with air and soil temperature, and wind velocity as significantly influenced by the production systems but not relative humidity. Results of this study provided significant benchmark information on establishing the potential of Jatropha as a rehabilitation species in the upland marginal condition and a suitable species in an agroforestry-based production system vis-à-vis its amelioration in the soil and microclimate. The SRF species namely, A. mangium and E. deglupta proved to have beneficial influence on the site factors.

Source or Periodical Title

Journal of the International Society for Southeast Asian Agricultural Sciences

ISSN

0859-3132

Volume

22

Issue

1

Page

111-122

Document Type

Article

College

College of Forestry and Natural Resources (CFNR)

Language

English

Subject

Marginal upland, Rehabilitation, Site factors

Digital Copy

yes

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