Shifting Cultivation and Secondary Succession in the Tropics

Author: Aweto   A.O.  

Publisher: CABI Publishing‎

Publication year: 2012

E-ISBN: 9781780641713

P-ISBN(Hardback):  9781780640433

Subject: S59 tropical and subtropical crops

Keyword: Technology Agriculture Tropical Agriculture

Language: ENG

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Description

Shifting cultivation or rotational bush fallowing is the predominant system of arable farming in the humid and sub-humid tropics where several hundred million people depend on this system of agriculture for their livelihood. Shifting Cultivation and Secondary Succession in the Tropics documents and systematizes findings in shifting cultivation over the last six decades and also characterizes secondary succession and related changes that fallow vegetation undergoes to the process of soil fertility restoration under bush fallow. It includes unique features such as graphical illustration of the organic matter equilibrium concept; correlation and multiple regression analysis; core-periphery analogy, encapsulated in the spatio-temporal model and the graphical unified model of succession and soil fertility restoration, therefore providing essential reading for researchers and students within tropical agriculture and related fields such as forestry, geography, environmental science and tropical development.

Chapter

Acknowledgements

1 The Tropics

1.1 Definition of the Tropics

1.2 Climate

1.2.1 Tropical rainforest climate

1.2.2 Tropical wet–dry (savanna) climate

1.2.3 Desert and semi-desert climates

1.2.4 Monsoon climate

1.2.5 Mild temperate (mesothermal) climate

1.3 Vegetation

1.3.1 Tropical rainforest

1.3.2 Savanna

1.3.3 Monsoon forest

1.3.4 Desert and semi-desert

1.4 Relief

1.5 Soils

1.5.1 Oxisols

1.5.2 Ultisols

1.5.3 Alfisols

1.5.4 Inceptisols

1.5.5 Entisols

1.5.6 Vertisols

1.5.7 Aridisols

1.5.8 Mollisols

1.6 Socio-economic Conditions

1.6.1 Low per-capita income

1.6.2 Low level of industrialization

1.6.3 Demographic characteristics

1.6.4 Political instability

1.6.5 Poverty

1.6.6 Diseases

1.7 Agriculture

1.7.1 Shifting cultivation

1.7.2 Permanent cultivation of field crops

1.7.3 Plantation agriculture

1.7.4 Livestock production

References

2 Shifting Cultivation: Definition, Basic Features and Types

2.1 Definition

2.2 Characteristics of Shifting Cultivation

2.3 Why Fields are Shifted

2.4 Forms of Shifting Cultivation

2.4.1 Slash-and-burn agriculture in forest and savanna lowlands

2.4.2 The chitemene system

2.4.3 The Hmong system – a migratory shifting cultivation

2.4.4 Shifting cultivation in the Orinoco floodplain

2.4.5 The slash–mulch system

2.4.6 The plough-in-slash system

References

3 Soil Dynamics during Cultivation

3.1 Effects of Vegetation Clearing

3.1.1 Effects on microclimate

3.1.2 Effects on the soil

3.1.3 Nutrient and organic matter cycles

3.1.4 Forest nutrient cycle

3.1.5 Savanna nutrient cycle

3.1.6 Nutrient cycling in shifting cultivation agroecosystems

3.2 Vegetation Slash Burning

3.2.1 Why vegetation slash is burned

3.2.2 Effects on the soil

3.3 Organic Matter Decline

3.4 Nutrient Decline during Cropping

3.5 Decline in Soil Physical Status

3.6 Erosion

3.7 Shifting Cultivation in River Floodplains

References

4 Soil Dynamics during the Fallow Period

4.1 Soil Organic Matter Dynamics

4.1.1 Organic matter equilibrium concept

4.1.2 Organic matter equilibrium concept: an explanatory model

4.1.3 Organic matter accretion in fallow soil in different ecological zones

4.2 Nutrient Dynamics

4.2.1 Forest fallows

4.2.2 Savanna fallows

4.3 Improvement in Soil Physical Status

4.4 Soil Organic Matter and Nutrient Dynamics in High-altitude Fallows

4.5 Soil Erosion

References

5 Fallow Vegetation Dynamics

5.1 Fallow Vegetation as a Resource

5.1.1 Intangible benefits

5.1.2 Tangible benefits

5.2 Rainforest Succession

5.2.1 General features of rainforest secondary succession

5.2.2 Characteristics of secondary or successional tree species

5.2.3 Changes infloristic composition of vegetation

5.2.4 Changes in number of species and species diversity

5.2.5 Changes in vegetation structure

5.3 Succession in Deciduous Seasonal (Monsoon) Forest

5.4 Succession in Savanna Ecosystems

5.4.1 Temporal dynamics of savanna vegetation

5.4.2 Succession in savanna vegetation subjected to burning

5.4.3 Succession in fire-protected savanna vegetation

5.4.4 Succession in fire-protected savanna plots in West Africa

5.4.5 Succession in fire-protected savanna in South America

5.5 Dellected Succession

5.5.1 Delleected succession in Africa

5.5.2 Dellected succession in tropical Asia

5.5.3 Dellected succession in tropical America

5.6 Succession in Areas of High Altitude on Tropical Mountains

5.7 Management of Fallow Vegetation

5.8 Nutrient Storage in Fallow Vegetation

References

6 Relationships between Fallow Soil and Vegetation

6.1 Fallow Soil–Vegetation Interrelationships: Correlation Analysis

6.1.1 Relationships between plant life forms and soil properties

6.1.2 Relationships between vegetation structural/floristic characteristics and soil chemical properties

6.2 Fallow Soil–Vegetation Interrelationships: Multiple Regression Analysis

6.3 Implications of Fallow Soil–Vegetation Interrelationships

References

7 Ecological Succession Theory and Models

7.1 Definition, Basic Features and Concepts of Ecological Succession

7.2 Types of Ecological Succession

7.3 Theoretical Viewpoints on the Nature, Processes and Causal Factors of Succession

7.3.1 The Clementsian holistic hypothesis

7.3.2 The individualistic theory

7.3.3 The resource-ratio hypothesis

7.3.4 The initial floristic composition hypothesis

7.3.5 The facilitation, in hibition and tolerance hypotheses

7.3.6 Initial soil–substrate conditions

7.3.7 The nucleation model

7.3.8 The spatio–temporal model

7.4 Changes that Occur in Ecosystems during Succession

7.5 The Climax

7.5.1 Monoclimax concept

7.5.2 Polyclimax concept

References

8 Theory and Models of Soil Fertility Restoration under Bush Fallow

8.1 Guillemin’s Model

8.2 The Sigmoid Model

8.3 Trenbath’s Models

8.4 The Spatio–Temporal Model

8.4.1 Core–periphery analogy

8.4.2 Stages of the process of soil fertility restoration

8.5 A Unified Theory of Succession and Soil Fertility Restoration

References

9 Intensification of Shifting Cultivation

9.1 Palm Fallows

9.2 Traditional Agroforestry Systems Involving Other Trees

9.2.1 Tree legumes in farms in Java

9.2.2 Trees in farms and fallows of Bora Indians, Peru

9.2.3 Casuarina trees in farms in Papua New Guinea

9.3 Enriched Fallows of Soil-improving Trees

9.3.1 Pada in rice fields and fallow vegetation in northern Thailand

9.3.2 Gliricidia-enriched fallows of south-western Nigeria

9.4 Planted Fallows

9.4.1 Seasonal or short-duration fallows

9.4.2 Multi-seasonal or long-duration planted fallows

9.5 Agroforestry

9.5.1 Faidherbia (Acacia) albida-based agroforestry in tropical African savanna

9.5.2 Leguminous/commercial trees in farms in the Chittagong Hill Tracts of Bangladesh

9.5.3 Fodder trees in bush fallow in the Philippines

9.5.4 Cassava–pigeon pea system in Bas-Congo, Democratic Republic of Congo

9.5.5 Maize cultivation intensification with soybean in Zimbabwe

9.5.6 Hedgerow intercropping in south-eastern Nigeria

9.6 Compost

9.7 Green Manure and Cover Crops

9.8 Mulching

9.9 Socio-economic and Technological Aspects of Intensification

References

10 Alternative Farming Systems and the Future of Shifting Cultivation

10.1 Continuous Cultivation Based on Application of Inorganic Fertilizers

10.1.1 Problems associated with the use of inorganic fertilizers

10.2 Continuous Cultivation Based on Manure Application

10.3 Alley Farming

10.3.1 Adoption of alley farming by small-scale farmers

10.3.2 Problems associated with alley farming

10.4 Quesungual Slash-and-Mulch Agroforestry System

10.5 Shifting Cultivation in Retrospect

10.5.1 Intercropping

10.5.2 Reduced tillage

10.5.3 Organic farming

10.5.4 Agricultural innovation and global warming

10.5.5 Deforestation

10.6 The Future of Shifting Cultivation

10.6.1 Stages and processes of intensifying shifting cultivation

10.6.2 Effects of land grabbing

10.6.3 Agricultural imperialism

10.6.4 Long-term prospects

References

Index

A

B

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D

E

F

G

H

I

J

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L

M

N

O

P

Q

R

S

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V

W

X

Z

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