Tree planting pattern effects on forage production in a Douglas-fir agroforest

摘要

Resource sharing among agroforestry system components, as expressed by spatial patterns along interfaces between components, is a crucial factor in both understanding present systems and in designing new agroforestry applications. A study of the spatial pattern of forage production surrounding 9–10 year old Douglas-fir trees in a agrosilvopastoral plantation near Corvallis, Oregon, was conducted during 1988 and 1989. Transects of plots were clipped both between trees (tree/tree) and between trees and open pastures (tree/pasture). Best-fit regression models relating forage production to distance from trees (tree/treeR2= 0.87; and tree/pastureR2= 0.89) were combined into a single prediction model. Observed forage production increased rapidly with increasing distance from trees during the initial 4 m. Trees had little effect on forage production beyond 4.5 m (approximately 2 canopy diameters) from the nearest tree. Predictions of different combinations of tree density and planting pattern indicated a strong interaction between density and pattern with highly aggregated plantations better able to maintain forage production at high tree densitie