Agroforestry potential in the Gangetic flood plain.
Ahmed F. U., Islam M. A.
Author Affiliation: Bangladesh Agricultural Research Council, Farmgate, Dhaka, Bangladesh.
Integrated management of Ganges flood plains and Sundarbans ecosystem: Proceedings of the National Seminar, Khulna University, Khulna, Bangladesh, 16-18 July, 1994. : 77-81
Abstract : Bangladesh has limited forest resources. The distribution of forests in the country is most irregular. In the gangetic floodplain government forests are limited in greater Khulna, with small quantities in Patuakhali and Barisal. People meet their fuelwood and timber requirements from the trees growing in the homestead and crop land, and also use agricultural residues and cow dung as fuel. These practices are affecting agricultural productivity because of declining organic matter content in the soil. To restore and sustain soil organic matter, fuelwood production in both homestead and farmland needs to be increased. Emphasis should be given to those species which are fast growing and add more organic matter to the soil. Beside fuelwood production, trees also provide timber, fruits, fodder and raw materials for cottage industries. Potential plant species for both homestead and farmland of the area include mango (Mangifera indica), date palm (Phoenix sylvestris), palmyra palm (Borassus flabellifer), coconut (Cocos nucifera), babla (Acacia nilotica), eucalypts (Eucalyptus camaldulensis), ipil-ipil (Leucaena leucocephala) and silkoroi (Albizia procera). The trees in homestead may be managed on a rotation of 2-3 years to produce fuelwood; fruit trees be retained for longer period to obtain fruits and timber. The planting arrangement for farmland may be single tree at the centre of a plot or trees at the 4 corners of a plot, and may be managed through root and branch prunings with regular pollarding at 2-3 m height. The leaves of trees from both homesteads and farmland should be used to increase organic matter content in crop fields. A table is given showing the different combinations of trees and crops grown in crop fields in selected areas.