Sammanfattning

Many smallholders in the Amazon employ swidden (slash-and-burn) farming systems in which forest or forest fallows are the primary source of natural soil enrichment. With decreasing opportunities to claim natural forests for agriculture and shrinking landholdings, rotational agriculture on smaller holdings allows insufficient time for fallow to regenerate naturally into secondary forest. This case study examines how Peruvian farmers use "improved fallows" as an adaptive response to a situation of decreasing soil fertility and how the farmers describe the rationale underlying the various actions taken in these modified fallow systems. The results indicate that farmers establish improved fallows using contextual ecological knowledge and various techniques to introduce a large diversity of tree species. This practice is also used to restore degraded land to agricultural production. The tasks of maintaining productivity on agricultural land and reforesting degraded areas is becoming increasingly urgent in the Amazon, making agricultural practices that involve reforestation and tree management highly relevant. Since swidden farming systems are the basis for the livelihoods of most Amazon smallholders, good farming practices elaborated by swidden farmers are important for sustainable small-scale family farming systems in the Amazon.

Nyckelord

Fallow management; Diversity management; Amazon; Farmer practice; Ecosystem services; Peru

Publicerad i

Agriculture and Human Values
2013, Volym: 30, nummer: 3, sidor: 417-428
Utgivare: SPRINGER

SLU författare

• Marquardt, Kristina

  • Institutionen för stad och land, Sveriges lantbruksuniversitet
    

• Milestad, Rebecka

  • Institutionen för stad och land, Sveriges lantbruksuniversitet
    

• Salomonsson, Lennart

  • Institutionen för stad och land, Sveriges lantbruksuniversitet
    

Globala målen

SDG15 Skydda, återställa och främja ett hållbart nyttjande av landbaserade ekosystem, hållbart bruka skogar, bekämpa ökenspridning, hejda och vrida tillbaka markförstöringen samt hejda förlusten av biologisk mångfald


UKÄ forskningsämne

Miljö- och naturvårdsvetenskap
Socialantropologi
Skogsvetenskap


Publikationens identifierare

DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10460-012-9415-5

Permanent länk till denna sida (URI)

https://res.slu.se/id/publ/56105