Salt 1:Sloping Land Technology:

[mikey]

Sloping Agricultural Land Technology (SALT-1):  A guide on how to farm your hilly land without losing your soil

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Asia makes up less that one third (or 30%) of the total world land area and yet carries over half (56%) of the world's population. Moreover, the average population density of Asia becomes a significant long term problem when food production is considered. Some countries in Asia have up to 8 people per hectare in terms of population density. In addition, the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) of the United Nations predicts that the world have to double its food production by the year 2030 to feed its exploding population. However, Asia, when compared to the rest of the world, has very little land which is suitable for cultivation that has not already been exploited.

To compound the problem, much of the lands now under cultivation in Asia have been classified as degraded lands or lands that have already undergone moderate to severe erosion. According to FAG, many Asian countries now have 20% or more of their lands considered as "degraded" lands with some countries approaching 50% land degredation (sic).

Deforestation

One problem of the region is the rapid deplection (sic) of its forest cover. Mass deforestation for economic reasons is carried out in a reckless way. Shifting cultivators, due to population pressures, move into newly opened areas and begin to practice swidden (slash and burn) agriculture. Then the forest areas, which are generally fragile, sloping soils, are subjected to intensive agriculture practices which rapidly degrade the land.

The Philippine Experience

An example of what has happened in terms of deforestation and land degredation (sic) is what has taken place during one generation in the Philippines. The Philippines, one Asian country, has almost 30 million hectares. In the 1950's almost half of that (about 16 m ha) was classified as natural forest. Today, less than one million hectares of natural forest remains. In the same time period population has almost doubled and the marginal or "fragile" lands have increased from 2 million hectares to 12 million.

Soil Erosion

The greatest problem man will encounter when forest trees are cut extensively without replanting and improper farming of fragile, sloping lands is soil erosion. The erosion of the topsoil -that thin upper crust on the earth's surface on which man plants his food crops -is an extremely serious problem in Asia.

Importance of topsoil

Soil is the result of the gradual weathering of plants, rocks, and minerals. Soil formation is a very slow process that in some estimates takes place at the rate of 2.5 centimeters per century. Topsoil is rich and fertile because of its organic matter content. Plants and animals die, decay, disintegrate, and are incorporated in the soil, making the soil fertile and capable of supporting the growth of food crops.

Function of Topsoil

Topsoil stores plant nutrients, air, and moisture. It is a virtual factory of intense biological activity; innumerable fungi and bacteria in topsoil break down organic matter and make the soil richer. Topsoil, therefore, is essential to productive agriculture. The nutrients in topsoil are crucial to crop production. They are the food of plants. So if the topsoil is lost, you cannot get a good harvest from your land unless you use expensive commercial fertilizer. One best thing you can do, therefore, is to protect your hilly land from soil erosion. Bear in mind that poor soil makes a farmer poor and the land poor.

Controlling Erosion
 

There are several traditional ways of controlling soil erosion, such as reforestation, terracing, multiple cropping, contouring, and cover cropping. The Asian Rural Life Development Foundation (ARLDF) in Kinuskusan, Bansalan, Davao del Sur, Philippines, promotes an erosion control technique that is both easier and less expensive to implement than the traditional methods. This technology is known as SALT or Sloping Agricultural Land Technology.

The SALT System
 

SALT is a package technology on soil conservation and food production, integrating different soil conservation measures in just one setting. Basically, SALT is a method of growing field and permanent crops in 3-meter to 5-meter-wide bands between contoured rows of nitrogen fixing trees. The nitrogen fixing trees are thickly planted in double rows to make hedgerows. When a hedge is 1.5 to 2 meters tall, it is cut down to about 75 centimeters and the cuttings (tops) are placed in alley-ways to serve as organic fertilizers.

SALT: An Agroforestry Scheme
 

SALT is a diversified farming system which can be considered agroforestry since rows of permanent shrubs like coffee, cacao, citrus and other fruit trees are dispersed throughout the farm plot. The strips not occupied by permanent crops, however, are planted alternately to cereals (corn, upland rice, sorghum, etc.) or other crops (sweet potato, melon, pineapple, castor bean, etc.) and legumes (soybean, mung bean, peanut, etc.). This cyclical cropping provides the farmer some harvest throughout the year. SALT also includes planting of trees for timber and firewood on surrounding boundaries. Examples of tree species for "boundary forestry" in SALT are mahoganies, casuarinas, sesbanias, cashew nuts, pili nuts, etc.

History of SALT
 

SALT was developed on a marginal site in Kinuskusan, Bansalan, Davao del Sur by the Mindanao Baptist Rural Life Center (MBRLC). In 1971, MBRLC started to employ contour terraces in its sloping areas. Dialogues with local upland farmers acquainted the Center with farm problems and needs which gave the Center the impetus to work out a relevant and appropriate upland farming system.

From testing different intercropping schemes and observing ipil-ipil-based farming systems in Hawaii and at the Center, the SALT was finally verified and completed in 1978. While it was still in the developing stage, the following guidelines were considered essential. The system must:

· adequately control soil erosion,
· help restore soil structure and fertility,
· be efficient in food crop production,
· be applicable to at least 50 percent of hillside farms,
· be easily duplicated by upland farmers with the use of local resources and preferably without making loans,
· be culturally acceptable,
· have the small farmer as the focus and food production as the top priority,
· be workable in a relatively short time,
· require minimal labor, and
· be economically feasible.

In 1978 a hectare of land was selected as a test site at the Mindanao Baptist Rural Life Center. It was typical of the surrounding farms: slope steeper than 15 degrees, had been farmed for five years or more, and had soils similar to those of most farms in the area. Contour lines were established carefully with the aid of an A-frame and planting of hedgerows and permanent crops was begun.

Advantages of SALT
 

The advantages of SALT are that it is a simple, applicable, low-cost, and timely method of farming uplands. It is a technology developed for Asian farmers with few tools, little capital, and little learning in agriculture. Contour lines are run by using an A-frame transit that any farmer can learn to make and use. A farmer can grow varieties of crops he is familiar with and old farming patterns can be utilized in the SALT system.

If farmers leave the SALT farm, like some tribal groups do, the nitrogen fixing trees and shrubs (NFTS) will continue to grow and overshadow the crop area. By the time the land is reverted to cultivation, the soil has been enriched already by the large amount of NFTS leaves and there is no erosion to contend with. In addition, the trees may be harvested for firewood or charcoal.

Various Forms of SALT
 

There are several forms of SALT, and a farmer may wish to use the SALT system in several variations. Simple Agro-Livestock Land Technology (SALT 2), Sustainable Agroforest Land Technology (SALT 3) and Small Agrofruit Livelihood Technology (SALT 4) are three variations of SALT that have been developed at the Mindanao Baptist Rural Life Center.

SALT 2 (Simple Agro-Livestock Land Technology) is a small livestock-based agroforestry preferably dairy goats with a land use of 40% for agriculture, 20% for forestry and 40% for livestock. As in a conventional SALT project, hedgerows of different nitrogen fixing trees and shrubs are established on the contour lines. The manure from the animals is utilized as fertilizer both for agricultural crops and the forage crops.

SALT 3 (Sustainable Agroforest Land Technology) is a cropping system in which a farmer can incorporate food production, fruit production, and forest trees that can be marketed. The farmer first develops a conventional SALT project to produce food for his family and possibly food for livestock. On another area of land he can plant fruit trees such as rambutan, durian, and lanzones between the contour lines. The plants in the hedgerows will be cut and piled around the fruit trees for fertilizer and soil conservation purposes. A small forest of about one hectare will be developed in which trees of different species may be grown for firewood and charcoal for short-range production. Other species that would produce wood and building materials may be grown for medium and long-range production. Other species that would produce wood and building materials may be grown for medium and long-range production. In some areas where the soil is too steep for row crops, contour lines may be established two or three meters apart and planted with flemingia or some other hedgerow species, and in between the hedgerows coffee, cacao, calamansi or other permanent crops could be planted.
 

SALT 4 (Small Agrofruit Livelihood Technology) is based on half-a-hectare of sloping land with 2/3 devoted to fruit trees and 1/3 intended for food crops. Hedgerows of different nitrogen-fixing trees and shrubs (Flemingia macrophylla, Desmodium rensonii, and Gliricidia sepium, etc.) are planted along the contours of the farm.

THE TEN STEPS OF SLOPING AGRICULTURAL LAND TECHNOLOGY (SALT 1)

Step 1: MAKE AN A-FRAME

 

Making the A-frame

In SALT, the first step you need to do is to make an instrument to locate the contour lines of your field. The ARLDF recommends using an A-frame. This is a simple yet effective tool which looks like the letter A, thus its name.

The A-frame is so simple that you make your own using materials generally found in your farm. To make the A-frame, three sturdy wooden or bamboo poles, a saw or bol, an ordinary carpenter's level, and string or rope are needed. Cut two pieces of wood at least one meter long to serve as the legs of the A-frame. Cut the third piece at least one-half meter long to be used as the crossbar of the frame.

Assembling the A-frame

Tie together the upper ends of the longer poles. Let the lower ends of the legs stand on level ground. Spread the legs about one meter apart to form a perfect angle. Brace horizontally teh shorter pole to become a crossbar between the two legs. Tie the carpenter's level on top of the crossbar.

Use of A-frame

Use the A-frame to find the contour lines of the land. Soil erosion can be prevented by plowing and planting following the contour lines. The contour line is a level line from one end of the field to the other and is found around the hill or mountain.

Other instruments for finding contour lines

Many other instruments can be used to find the contour lines of your field. One is the variation of the A-frame mentioned earlier which uses a string and a rock as a plumb-bob instead of the carpenters level. When done right, this is possibly the most simplest, economic and accurate method of locating contour lines.

Other farmers ahve chosen to use "O-rings", water levels, homemade transits and even professional transits themselves to locate the contour lines. Your method of locating the contour lines should be one that is acceptable to your local area.

Step 2: LOCATE THE CONTOUR LINES

Finding the Contour Lines

The next step is to use your instrument of choice to locate the contour lines in your field. Cut tall grasses or remove any obstructions so that you can move easily and mark lines. When using the A-frame, two people will make the work much easier and faster. One will operate the A-frame while the other marks the located contour lines with stakes.

Make a study of the area for which contour lines are to be determined. Begin marking contour lines near the highest point. Let the A-frame stand on the ground. Without moving the rear leg, lift the front leg. Then put the from leg down onthe ground that is on the same level with the rear leg.

The two legs of the A-frame are on the same level when the air space in the carpenter's level stops in the middle. When this happens, it means that you have found the contour line which is a level line between the two legs of the A-frame. Mark with a stake the spot where the rear leg stands.

Length of Contour Lines

Move the A-frame forward by placing the rear leg on the spot where the front leg stood before. Adjust the front leg again until it levels with the rear leg. For every two to three meters of contour line you find mark it with a stake. Follow this procedure until you reach the entire length of the contour line which is the other side of the mountain or hill.

[mikey]

Distance of Contour Lines

 

Try to locate as many contour lines as possible. Remember, the closer the contour lines to each other, the more potential erosion control occurs. Also, more nutrient rich biomass is produced and made available to the crops growing in the alley.

Criteria

There are two criteria for determining the distance between contour lines: vertical drop and surface distance. Generally, no more than a one meter vertical drop is desirable for effective erosion control. Therefore, the steeper the slope, the closer the contour hedgerows. Conversely, the flatter the slope, the wider the spacing of hedges. However on the flatter slopes, it is recommended that contour hedgerows be spaced no further apart than 5 meters in order to maximize the benefits of the nitrogen fixing trees/shrubs on soil fertility management.



In determining a one meter vertical drop, the "eye-hand" method is a simple procedure to use. If using a transit or home-made transit, the 1 meter vertical drop can be obtained very quickly.

Step 3: PREPARE THE CONTOUR LINES

After you have found and marked the contour lines, prepare them by plowing and harrowing until ready for planting. The width of each area to be prepared should be one meter. The stakes will serve as your guide during plowing.

Step 4: PLANT SEEDS OF NITROGEN FIXING TREES AND SHRUBS

Planting Nitrogen Fixing Species

On each prepared contour line make two (2) furrows at a distance of one-half meter apart. Sow the seeds in each furrow to allow for a good, thick stand of seedling. Cover the seeds lightly and firmly with soil.

Importance of Leguminous Hedgerows

The ability of nitrogen fixing trees to grow on poor soils and in areas with long dry seasons makes them good plants for restoring forest cover to watersheds, slopes and other lands that have been denuded of trees. Through natural leaf drop they enrich and fertilize the soil. In addition, they compete vigorously with coarse grasses, a common feature of many degraded areas that have been deforested or depleted by excessive agriculture.

Examples of Nitrogen Fixing Trees and Shrubs (NFTS)

Flemingia macrophylla, Desmodium rensonii, Gliricidia sepium, and Calliandra calothyrsus are the best examples of nitrogen fixing trees for hedgerows on the SALT farm. Other examples of nitrogen fixing trees and shrubs (NFTS) which may be suitable for SALT hedgerows are Indigofera tyesmane, Calliandra tetragona, Leucaena luecocephala, and Leucaena diversifolia. The members of the Cassia genus such as spectabilis and siamea are not mentioned here because of their doubtful fixing on nitrogen. Remember, you must select the species that grows best in your climate and particular soils.

Step 5: CULTIVATE ALTERNATE STRIPS

The space of land between the thick rows of nitrogen fixing trees where the crops are planted is called a strip. Others names for the strip are alleyways or avenues.

Cultivating Alternate Strips



If you wish to prepare the soil for planting before the NFTS are fully grown, do it alternately, on strips 2, 4, 6, 8 and so on. Alternate cultivation will prevent erosion because the unplowed strips will hold the soil in place. When the NFTS are fully grown, you can proceed with cultivation on every strip.

Step 6: PLANT PERMANENT CROPS



Plant permanent crops in every third strips. They may be planted at the same time the seeds of nitrogen fixing trees are sown. Only the spots for planting are cleared and dug; later, only ring weeding is employed until the NFTS are large enough to hold the soil so full cultivation can begin.

Examples of Permanent Crops

Durian, lanzones, rambutan, coffee, banana, citrus, cacao, and others of the same height are good examples of permanent crops. Tall crops are planted at the bottom of the hill while the short ones are planted at the top. Shade-tolerant permanent crops can be intercropped with the tall crops.

Step 7: PLANT SHORT-AND-MEDIUM TERM CROPS



You can plant short and medium-term income producing crops between stripc of and among permanent crops. They are your sources of food and regular income while waiting for the permanent crops to bear fruits.

Examples of Short-term Crops

Suggested short and medium-term crops are pineapple, ginger, gabi, castor bean, camote, peanut, mung bean, sorghum, corn, upland rice, etc. To avoid shading, short plants are planted away from tall ones.

Step 8: TRIM REGULARLY NITROGEN FIXING TREES/SHRUBS

Pruning Hedgerows

About once a month, the continuously NFTS are cut down to a height of one to one half meters from the ground. Cut leaves and twigs are always piled at the base of the crops. They serve as a soil cover to minmize the impact of the raindrop on the bare soil. They also act as an excellent organic fertilizer for both the permanent and short-term crops. In this way only, a minimal amount of commercial fertilizer (about 1/4 of the total fertilizer requirements) is necessary.

Step 9: PRACTICE CROP ROTATION



Rotating Non-Permanent Crops

A good way of rotating is to plant grains (corn, upland rice, sorghum, etc.), tubers (camote, cassava, gabi, etc.) andothe rcrops (pineapple, casto bean, etc.) on strips where legumes (mung bean, bush sitao, peanut, etc.) were planted previously and vice versa. This practice will help maintain the fertility and good condition of your soil. Other management practices in crop growing like weeding and pest and insect control should done regularly.

Step 10: BUILD GREEN TERRACES



Maintain Green Terraces

Apart from providing you with adequate food and sufficient income, another even more important benefit of using SALT is the control of soil erosion. This is done by the double thick rows of nitrogen fixing trees and ht natural terraces being formed along the contour lines. As you go on farming the sloping land, keep gathering and piliing up straw, stalks, twigs, branches, leaves, rocks, and stones at he base ofhte rows of nitrogen fixing trees. By doing this regualrly and as the years go by, you can build strong,sustainable, naturally green and beautiful terraces which will reliable anchor your precious soil in its right place.

Advantages of SALT Farming

As a proven system of upland farming, SALT has certain good qualities over both the tradtional techniques of slash-and-burn and conventional terrace farming.

The SALT system protects the soil from erosion.
SALT helps restore soil fertility and structure.
SALT is efficeint in food crop production.
SLAT is applicable to at least 50 per cent of hillside farms.
SALT can be duplicated readily by hillside farmers.
SALT is culturally acceptable becaused the farming production as the top priority. Fruit trees, forest and other crops are secondary priority.
SALT is workable in a relatively short time.
SALT is economically feasible.
SALT is ecologically sound.
The SALT farm can easily revert back to forest land if left unfarmed.
In the Philippines SALT fits into the framework of the government's rainfed resoiurces development strategy for the uplands.
Conclusion

The Asian Rural Life Development Foundation recognizes that SALT is not a perfect farming system. There is not and never will be one system for all farmers. SALT is not a miracle nor a panacea. To establish a one-hectare SALT farm requires much hard work and discipline. There is no easy way. It takes three to ten years to deplete the soil of nutrients and to lose the topsoil; no system can bring depleted, eroded soil back into production in a few short years. Soil loss leads to low yields and poverty, but land can be restored to a reasonable level of productivity by using SALT.

Do you have any questions or suggestions? Let us know. See us personally at the Asian Rural Life Development Foundation located on the campus of the Mindanao Baptist Rural Life Center in Kinuskusan, Bansalan, Davao del Sur or write to us at P.O. Box 80322, 8000 Davao City. You can also send us an email; our address is: 2081351@mcimail.com. We will be happy to recieve your comments.

Some Fact and Figures on the Original SALT Farm

Source: Asian Rural Life Development Foundation Editorial Staff, 1997. How to Series (1), Kinuskusan, Bansalan, Davao del Sur, 20p.

 

[mikey]

Sustainable Agroforest Land Technology (SALT 3): A guide on how to grow crops with trees in the SALT system

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Introduction
In the Philippines, about 70% of the total land area is sloping. With increasing population pressure, more and more of this sloping land has been brought under intense cultivation. Just consider: The country had about 17 million hectares of forests in 1934 when the population was less than 15 million. However, when the country's population had more than doubled in 1969, forestlands dwindled to about 10.4 million hectares. The forest lands further decreased to around 8.5 million hectares in 1976 and 7.4 million hectares in 1980, as population rose to 43 and 48 million, respectively.

It is estimated that as of 1990, there were only about 6.2 million hectares of forests left, a volume roughly 21% of the country's total land area of 30 million hectares. The Philippine population, on the other hand, is placed at about 63 million, of which about 17 million constitute the upland dwellers.

To save the remaining forests in the country, the Mindanao Baptist Rural Life Center (MBRLC), a non-governmental organization based in Kinuskusan, Bansalan, Davao del Sur, developed Sustainable Agroforest Land Technology or SALT 3 in 1987.

And out of nearly 15 million hectares of classified forest land in the country, more than 15 million hectares are already categorized as badly denuded and much of the remainder is in various stages of degradation.

SALT-3 is a variant of agroforestry and this manual will guide on how to put it up in your hillyland. And like most MBRLC technologies, SALT 3 has also ten basic steps, which are discussed in this manual.

 

Step 1: Set Up the Agroforestry Nursery
Ensure sufficient supply of planting materials for your agroforest farm by setting up your own nursery. Establish an accessible nursery (3 meter by 5 meters for nursery and about 5 feet by 10 feet) with the following fixtures: potting shed, transplant shed, and seedbeds. Basic materials like watering cans for sprinkling seedlings, shovel, and spade, should also be made available.

Step 2: Care and Manage Your Seedlings
For better growth and field survival, the production of healthy and vigorous planting stock is necessary. Here are some timely tips:

Sowing the seeds.
Most forest tree seeds are hard to germinate so they need scarification. There are several methods of seed scarification. For most forestry seeds, the most common methods are mechanical, water soak or hot water treatment. The most common problem encountered in seedling establishment is damping off and insect defoliators.

Sow the seeds in a sterilized seedbed to avoid damping off. Sterilization may be done by pouring boiling water in the soil media where you will sow the seeds. Keep the seedbeds moist at all times. Mulch and shade the plants.

Transplanting.
Prune the roots of species that can be outplanted bare root (mahogany, teak, etc.). Do not allow weeds to compete with your transplants. Use compost soil or topsoil mixed with dried manure during transplanting.

Before transplanting them to the field, harden the seedlings first by gradually exposing them to sunlight and more open conditions. Do this over a period of 6 months in order to develop sturdy, well-developed crown and many fine, fibrous lateral roots.

Step 3: Find the Contour Lines and Establish Your Food Crops on the Lower Portion of the Farm
Find the contour lines of the farm's half lower portion by using an A-frame. Plant the identified contours with any of the following hedgerow species: Flemingia macrophylla, Desmodium rensonii, Gliricidia sepium, Leucaena diversifolia, and L. leucocephala. In poorer acidic soils, Flemingia and Indigofera tyesmani are recommended.

Plant preferred short-term crops (examples: ginger, maize, upland rice, sweet potato, mung bean, melon, etc.) on every first and second strips. Plant long-term crops (citrus, cacao, coffee, banana, black pepper, etc.) on every third strip. These can be intercropped with fruit trees (rambutan, durian, lanzones, guava, mangosteen, etc.) following appropriate planting distances. Multi-storey cropping may also be practiced (e.g., pineapple + cacao + durian) in one strip.

The earlier you establish your food and cash crops, the better off you will be in meeting your immediate needs. Follow the SALT-1 steps in establishing your food crops.

Step 4: Prepare the Site for Your Wood Crops or Trees
Locate the woodlot at the upper half of the project so that the agricultural component on the lower portion will benefit from the conserved moisture and nutrients from the wood crops.

On areas with steep slope and highly erodible soils, extra care must be exercised so as not to induce soil erosion when clearing the area. You can use either partial or complete removal of vegetation whichever is more favorable to you. Avoid burning.

Step 5: Compartmentalize and Space Your Trees
For a 3-fold objective of soil rehabilitation, firewood production and timber growing, you can maximize the use of land space by following the high density strategy of establishing small-scale woodlots. (Refer to Table 1 for further details about spacing).

Step 6: Outplant Your Trees
This may be done at the start or up to the middle of the rainy season so that seedlings can get established prior to the dry season.

Follow the contour when outplanting. Be sure not to break the earth-ball when setting the seedlings into the planting hole. The upper part of the earth-ball should be level or slightly deeper than the edge of the hole. Soil is filled into the spaces and tamped firmly all around.

For fast recovery of the seedlings, apply animal manure. Mulch the seedlings to insure higher linability.

Step 7: Intercrop Your Tree Crops
Short- and medium-term and cash crops (ginger, sweet potato, yam bean, cassava) can be intercropped in the forestry component during the first two years. Long-term ones like black pepper and rattan can be incorporated at the start of the second year.

For effective soil management, see to it that non-legume short-term crops are replaced by leguminous ones and vice versa in every cropping.

Step 8: Do Tree Stand Improvement
Apart from regular ring-weeding and liberation cutting, improve the stand of your trees. Remove the malformed trees. Prune unnecessary branches. Prune only the branches within the 505 of its total height from the ground to the top. But don't over-prune; otherwise, you will make your trees stunted.

Replant the missing hills if you feel the replanted trees can still catch up. However, replanting is laborious and expensive and should be done only to maintain required spacing or density. This is also recommended only when mortality is more than 30%.

Step 9: Harvest Your Agroforest Products Regularly
Timely harvesting of crops saves waste (see Table 2). All households and useful products must be gathered, processed and marketed. In the forestry components - forage from tree prunings, fuelwood and roundwood from thinnings commence during the second year. Thin out regularly your forestry area until the timber crop spacing requirement is complied with. In some instances, minor forest crops can be planted under the trees.

Step 10: Maintain Your SALT-3 Farm
For one, trim the hedgerows regularly. Trim the hedgerows once they start to shade the agricultural crops. Spread trimmings evenly throughout the field to check weeds, equally distribute your nutrient additions, and also conserve soil moisture. Practice crop rotation in your food crop production.

From the MBRLC experience, establishing a 2-hectare SALT 3 farm costs about P6,000.00 Cost and return analysis conducted on the 5th year of operation showed that the technology can generate cash net profit of P1,500.00 per month. Its return on investment (ROI) is 7.97%.

But on top of this economic benefit, an upland farmer who follows the system has a farm that is well-protected and ameliorated soil due to integration and diversification scheme, thus resulting in a sustainable farming system.

Table 1. Spacing (Initial and Final) of Trees in SALT 3
Component on top-down sequence Hectare Spacing (in meters) Duration
Initial Final
Samanea saman 1/4 1 x 1 8 x 8 Long term
Calamus merilli (as intercrop of S. saman) 1/4 8 x 8 8 x 8 Long term
Pterocarpus indicus 1/8 2 x 2 4 x 4 Long term
Sweitenia macrophylla 1/8 2 x 2  4 x 4 Long term
Sesbania sesban (as intercrop of P. indicus and S. macrophylla)  1/4 1 x 1 1 x 1 Short term
Acacia auriculiformis 1/16 2 x 2 2 x 2 Medium term
Acacia mangium 1/16 2 x 2 2 x 2 Medium term
Sesbania formosa 1/18 1 x 1 1 x 1 Short term
Leucaena diversifolia 1/4 1 x 1 1 x 1 Short term
Bambusa spp. (as boundary) on border  4-6 m 4-6 m Long term

 
Table 2. Harvesting Plan of Trees in SALT 3
Year Species Harvesting Method Uses
1 Leucaena diversifolia Selective Fuelwood, charcoal fodder, etc.
2 Sesbania sesban All-out -do-
3-5 Samanea saman Selective -do-
6-14 Bamboo and rattan
 Selective
 Furniture, light construction, etc.
Sweitenia macrophylla Selective Fuelwood and light construction
Acacia mangium All-out -do-
Acacia auriculiformis All-out -do-
Pterocarpus indicus Selective Timber and furniture
15-25 Rattan All-out Timber and furniture
Pterocarpus indicus All-out -do-
Sweitenia macrophylla All-out -do-
Samanea saman All-out -do-

 

Source: Mindanao Baptist Rural Life Center Editorial Staff, 2000. How to Series No. 7, Davao del Sur, 15 p.

 

[mikey]

Small Agrofruit Livelihood Technology (SALT 4):  A guide on how to integrate fruit trees into the SALT system

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Introduction
In recent years, agroforestry has become a byword among rural developers and environmentalists not only in the Philippines but in other Asian countries as well. Wherever introduced, agroforestry has generally received a welcome commendation from various sectors.

Agroforestry has been defined as "a scheme of producing food hand-in-hand with wood in the same piece of land." Others considered agroforestry as "a system of land management whereby forest and agricultural crops are produced in the same management unit at the same time or sequentially." Possible strategies include intercropping, multiple cropping, monocropping and/or succession cropping in the various sub-units.

The Philippine government described agroforestry as "a sustainable management of land" which can help in increasing overall production. The system combines agricultural crops, tree crops and forest plants and/or animals simultaneously or sequentially. Agroforestry also applies management practices which are compatible with the cultural pattern of local production.

Agroforestry, environmentalists claim, is an ecologically sound system of land management whereby forest and agricultural products are produced optimally on appropriate and suitable areas simultaneously or sequentially for the social and economic benefits of the community.

Agroforestry Opportunities
Like most systems, agroforestry offers several opportunities. The regional office of the Food and Agriculture Organization said agroforestry can play an increasingly vital role in the following situations:

Agricultural lands where trees can play an important role on the most productive lands. Agroforestry projects may be most successful when initiated on good quality lands before being transferred to poorer quality sites.
Critical watershed areas of major river systems where the overriding demand is for conservation. Here, land use solutions should attempt stabilization of farming practices through appropriate land preparation (e.g. terracing) agroforestry, and other conservation farming practices.
Shifting cultivation areas which occur mainly in the humid tropics. Agroforestry could be the land use option which harmonizes the ecological considerations with the socio-economic imperatives of slash-and-burn (kaingin) practices, which are of themselves a form of agroforestry.
Deforested land encroached for the purpose of "controlling" land resources and for practicing marginal agriculture. These areas are prime candidates for agroforestry, both from ecological and socioeconomic view points.
Marginal lands and wastelands where the land tenure status is varied. These can be wholly owned by the state, or may be common-property, resources, or even privately-owned lands. For one reason or another, these land resources are wasted.
Small Agrofruit Livelihood Technology
Experts identify several types of agroforestry; among them agrosilvicultural (tees with agricultural crops) and silvopastoral (trees with pastures and livestock). In recent years, fruit crops and other perennial horticultural crops are integrated in agroforestry projects. The Mindanao Baptist Rural Life Center (MBRLC) in the southern part of the Philippines introduced fruit trees into a new SALT system called Small Agrofruit Livelihood Technology (SALT 4).

The system's general objectives are to produce food, increase income and practice soil conservation in a limited sloping land (one-half hectare). Marketing of agricultural crops has been cited by most farmers as one of the biggest problems as most uplands have no farm-to-market roads. Because of this, the MBRLC introduced the growing of high value crops like fruits. Fruits, after all, can be easily marketed, not mentioning they can stand the rigors of spoiling unlike the easily perishable vegetables and other perennial crops. In cases where fruits easily rot, farmers may resort to planting those fruits that can easily be marketed right in their farm or neighboring areas.

1. Establish a Nursery Area Located at the Center Portion of the Farm
To make sure that you have a sufficient supply of planting materials at lower cost, set up your own nursery. The nursery must be near the house and a reliable source of water and is free from pest and disease problems.

Nursery shed
Upon selecting an area, remove debris and grasses. A nursery with a dimension of 3 meters by 1.5 meters is sufficient for half-a-hectare farm. You need only four poles and a roof made of locally-available materials.

Materials needed
Among the equipment needed in a nursery are watering cans (with sprinkling head or a can with small holes punched in it), plastic bags for potting, several seed boxes, a spray bottle, and cans for boiling water.

2. Prepare High Quality Planting Materials of Fruit Trees
Fill the seedboxes with river sand (not sea sand). If sand is not available, you may use the ordinary soil. Pour boiling water over the seedbox to sterilize the sand. The seedbox and sand should be soaked thoroughly. Before sowing the seeds, wait for 3-4 hours for the sand to cool down.

Fruit selection
In choosing the fruit species to grow on your SALT 4 farm, it is important to choose fruit species that grow well in your locality. A simple way of finding this is by observing the fruits that grow well in the area. Fruits form other areas can also be used on a trial basis before planting them in large numbers.

Seed collection and grafting
Collect seeds which are very prolific and disease-free. Plant them in your sterilized seedbeds. Water the boxes 2 times a day, keeping the soil moist at all times. When the seedling has 2-true leaves, it is ready for transplanting and bagging. Punch several holes in the bottom of your plastic bags. For bagging, use a mixture of equal parts sand, soil and goat manure (other manures can be used but should be dried first before using). Fill the bags with the mixture and transplant the seedlings. Care for the seedlings for 6-8 months. At this time, the seedlings are ready to be grafted. Fruit trees are grated for these reasons: (1) true-to-type (you get the exact type of fruits like the mother plant); (2) less time to fruiting; (3) the strengths of a native rootstock can be paired with the high quality fruit of an exotic (introduced) variety; (4) decreases the height of the fruit tree; (5) easy to adjust to its environment; and (6) resistant to pests and diseases.

Collect scions (tip cuttings) from healthy fruit trees known to produce high quality fruit. Graft the scion to the seedling. Wrap the connection with thin plastic. Remove plastic after 21 days. The following fruits are highly recommended for grafting: durian, mango, rambutan, and lanzones. Cuttings are best for coffee, black pepper, citrus and Barbados cherry.

Hardening and transplanting
Allow the grafted planting materials to harden for 3 months. Hardening is done by gradually withdrawing water and exposing to the sun. At the end of the 3 months, the grafted materials are ready for planting in the field. Grow as many planting materials as you can. This ensures a steady supply of planting materials. Excess planting materials may be sold to other interested farmers or individuals.

Large planting materials
Many commercial fruit growers, however, leave their seedlings in the nursery for a longer period of time to become so-called large planting materials (LPMs). This means the grafted seedlings are left in the nursery for up to 2 years before being outplanted. The advantage of LPM is that they survive much better once planted. Durian and mangosteen benefit the most from this practice.

3. Establish and Develop Your Contour Hedgerows
Locating contour lines
Contour lines of the farm may be found by using an A-frame (read Appendix 1 on how to make an A-frame). Let the A-frame stand on the ground. Without moving the rear leg, lift the front leg. Then, put the front leg down on the ground that is on the same level with the rear leg. When the air space in the carpenters level stops in the middle, you have already found a contour line.

Mark with a stake the spot where the rear leg stands. After doing so, move the A-frame forward by placing the rear leg on the spot where the front leg stood before. The process is repeated again. The recommended distance between contour lines is 3-4 meters. Be sure to locate the contour lines of the farm accurately. Cultivate the identified contour lines. If laid out haphazardly, you may create a channel on the slope, thus assisting erosion in removing your precious topsoil.

Contour lines preparation
After finding the contour lines, prepare them by plowing and harrowing until ready for planting. The width of each area to be prepared should be one meter. The stakes will serve as your guide during cultivation. As in other SALT systems, every third step is cultivated at the beginning.

Recommended nitrogen fixing trees and shrubs
The recommended hedgerow species are nitrogen fixing trees and shrubs like Flemingia macrophylla and Desmodium rensonii. You need at least 3 kilograms of both species to plant half a hectare. The hedgerows will occupy at least 20% of the farm area. Other species which can be used for hedgerows include Gliricidia sepium (locally known as "madre de cacao" or "kakawate"), Leucaena leucocephala, L. diversifolia, Calliandra calothyrsus, Indigofera tysemani, and those that are locally grown in the area.

Planting hedgerow species
On each prepared contour line, make two furrows at a distance of 50 centimeters apart. Plant one seed per centimeter. Planting must be done at the start or during rainy season. To avoid washing out of newly-planted seeds, cover them with mulching materials. Newly-planted hedgerows must be weeded and cultivated at least once a month or more if necessary.

Importance of nitrogen fixing species
Nitrogen fixing species are important because they manufacture their own nitrogen. Therefore cuttings of the leaves and stems have a lot of nutrients. These cuttings are very useful source of organic fertilizer when placed on the soil.

4. Plant Food Crops at the Lower One-Third Portion of Your Farm
Plant your preferred short-term crops on the lower 1/3 portion of the farm. Short-term crops (such as corn, upland rice, mungo, beans, and others) should be planted in the strips between the hedgerows. Planting the food crops on the lower portion of the farm allows them to receive the largest amount of sunlight. The earlier you establish your food and cash crops, the better off you will be meeting your immediate needs.

5. Plant Fruit Trees at the Upper Two-Thirds Portion of Your Farm
Plant fruit tree seedlings when they are 9-11 months old and at the start of the rainy season. The fruit trees, which will be the farm's main cash provider in the future, must occupy about 2/3 of the whole farm. Draw a map showing the areas where you intend to plant your fruit trees along with the proper spacing. The map could serve as your guide and record of planting. Provide proper spacing for the fruit trees so as to prevent overlapping and competition for nutrients when full grown (see Appendix 2 for proper planting distance). Design your pattern to suit the needs of your farm.

It is recommended that fruit trees with short production life 1-5 years of fruit production be planted together with fruit tree species that have longer production of life (15-50 years of production), especially during the first year of establishing your SALT 4 farm. By doing this, you can have fruits within 2-3 years (coming from the short-term fruit trees). When production from short-term fruits declines, the long-term fruits will by then be in full production. Examples of short-term fruits are kalamansi (Philippine lime), balimbing, coffee, and bananas. Long-term fruits include mango, durian, lanzones, mangosteen and the like. You may also plant other fruit trees that are very popular and saleable in your area.

Alternate planting
Plant several and different fruit species in your SALT 4 farm to add diversity; 3-5 species is best. Alternate these species to help prevent disease and insect problems. Doing this will lessen monetary loss if there is a poor fruiting year from one species.

If a farmer can buy all the necessary planting materials fro the farm, this is also an option. The advantage is that you do not have to wait 9-11 months for the seedlings in your nursery to grow. The problem is that this can be very expensive. Buy your stock from reliable nurseries. However, it is still important to maintain a nursery to ensure you have replacement seedlings.

6. Intercrop Your Fruit Trees with Short-Term Crops
Intercropping is the growing of different crops within the same area. This is done to best use the space and the available sunlight. Plant banana, coffee, pineapple, papaya, or root crops around the fruit trees while they are still developing. Some intercrops provide the much-needed shade in the growing stage of trees.

Continue growing intercrops until the fruit trees are big enough to shade them out. Even then, crops that require less sunlight (like pineapple, ginger and ube) can be grown under the fruit trees. The short-term intercrops will serve as your primary source of income in the first 3 years. If plowing is employed, it is important not to plow to close to the seedlings. A good rule is not to plow any closer than the leaf drop. This prevents the roots of the fruit tree seedling from being damaged. Examples of intercropping are listed in Appendix 3.

7. Practice Crop Rotation and Covercropping
Crop Rotation
To make sure that you are not depleting your soil of nutrients, rotate your food crops. This means that after planting corn, you can plant legumes (beans, pulses, and peas) in the next cropping season or vice versa. Do not burn anything. Slash the standing stalks and allow them and the remains of the legumes to rot in the field. They serve as mulching materials, suppress the growth of weeds, and add nutrients to the soil. In addition, they hold moisture and reduce raindrop splash erosion.

Covercropping
When the fruit trees have fully grown and/or are starting to bear fruits, you may plant covercrops like Desmodium heterophyllum and Arachis pentoi underneath. Aside from helping control erosion, covercrops can also be used as forage for rabbits.

8. Trim Your Hedgerows Regularly for Mulching
Six months after planting, the hedgerows should be tall enough for their first pruning. The nitrogen-rich hedgerow prunings will become the fertility component of the system. When the young hedges reach a height of about 2-3 meters and have a waist high basal diameter of at least 2.5 centimeters, they are ready for their first trimming.

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Pruning hedgerows
Prune them regularly to a height of one meter (or about waist-high) from the ground: Use a sharp bolo when pruning in order to avoid breaking the remaining twigs and branches which will eventuall (sic) cause the hedgerows to die. Trimming of hedgerows is done every 30-45 days after the initial pruning.

Always pile the cut leaves and twigs at the base of the fruit trees or dispersed them evenly over cash crops areas. In intercropping areas, some of the trimmings may be concentrated around the trees while the rest may be distributed over the cash crops.

Green manuring/fertilization
The prunings serve as fertilizer for both cash and fruit trees. In some instances, particularly during the developing stage of fruit trees and cash crops, you may fertilize them with organic matter. Should there be more than enough prunings for the crops - this happens during the rainy season - they may be used as forage for goats and other livestock raised in the farm. However, if prunings are used for animal feeds, manures should be brought back into the system and placed on the fruit and food crops.

9. Harvest and Market Your Products on Time
Do not delay in harvesting your food crops. Corn must be harvested from 90-120 days after planting. Papaya are ready for harvest six months after planting. As for pineapple, you may harvest them one year after planting and every month thereafter. For further details about harvesting, refer to Appendix 4.

Methods of harvesting
Fruit trees may be harvested in several ways. You may harvest them using a sharp bolo or pruning shears. Some fruits just drop; harvest them by hand or by using a bamboo pole with a net attached. But before harvesting your fruit crops, plan ahead how and where you will market your products. Planning ahead will enable you to get the best price for your fruits.

10. Maintain Your SALT 4 Farm
Among the cultural practices that you need to follow in this kind of farming are weeding, pruning of hedgerows, planting hedgerow skips, and controlling of pests and diseases. Only ring weeding is recommended for fruit trees. The weeds may be used as mulching materials. Should there be skips and die-backs in hedgerows, be sure to do replanting.

Also build your terraces by putting rocks and stones, twigs and branches, and leaves at the center of your hedgerows. By doing this regularly, you can build strong, permanent, naturally green and beautiful terraces which will hold the topsoil on your farm.

Cultural practices
Replant fruit trees that have died. Pruning is also needed by some fruit trees. Bagging of young fruits, such as jackfruit and mango, protects them against pests and diseases. Maintain your supply of nursery seedlings. Collect the seeds and grow them in your nursery. Take the scions and cuttings from healthy, high quality fruit trees. You may sell some of the seedlings to interested farmers and individuals.

Pest management
If fruit production is greatly affected by pests and diseases, spray the fruit trees with recommended chemical. Generally though, by having alternating species, healthy seedlings, proper spacing, and good fertilization, most pests and diseases will not greatly affect your fruit harvests. It is much easier to prevent pests and diseases than to treat them.

Fertilization
Fruit trees produce fruits even without fertilizer. But for high yields and quality, it is best to fertilize the fruit trees with manure and/or commercial fertilizer. As soil fertility is different in each area, it is not possible to give specific fertilizer needs. In addition, different fruit tree species require different amount of fertilizer. When fertilizing fruit trees, place the fertilizer in a ring around the trunk 20 centimeters away. On older trees, place the fertilizer at the leaf drop.

Appendix 1. How to make and A-frame.
A-frame with carpenter's level
You need not to have expensive soil surveying equipment to locate the contour lines of your farm. You can do this by using an A-frame, a simple and practical instrument, which you can easily make using locally available materials. Below are the steps in making an A-frame.

1. Secure the following materials:

Three wooden or bamboo poles with a 1.5-inch diameter (2 of which should be 2.1 meters long and one about 1.2 meters long)
Sturdy string for tying or nails
A carpenter's level.
2. Nail together the upper ends of the longer poles. Let the lower ends of the legs stand on level ground.

3. Spread the legs about one meter apart to form a figure just like a letter A. Brace horizontally the shorter pole to become a crossbar between the two legs.

4. Tie the carpenter's level on top of the crossbar. Use the A-frame to find the contour lines of your farm.

A-frame with a stone
If you don't have a carpenter's level, you can also use a stone or any similar heavy object. Below are the steps in making this kind of A-frame:

Get the following materials: three wooden or bamboo poles with a 1.5-inch diameter (two should be "head high" of the user and one as crossbar), sturdy string for tying or nails, and a stone about the size of a fist or any similar object.
Tie or nail the two longer poles at one end, about 10 centimeters from the end. Make sure they are securely fastened. These will make the legs of the A-frame. Make notches on the points of contact so that the poles will not slip.
Spread the legs and brace with the shorter pole to make a figure "A." Tie or nail the crossbar (about 10 centimeters each from each end) to the middle of the legs of the"A." The crossbar will support the legs of the frame and will serve as guide in marking the level ground position.
Tie one end of the string to the point where the two legs of the A-frame are joined.
Tie the other end of the string to the stone or any object for weight. The stone should be heavy enough so that when suspended, it will not sway with the wind. The stone should hang about 20 centimeters below the crossbar.
Calibrating the A-frame with stone
Locate reasonably level ground and place the A-frame in an upright position. Mark the spots where the legs (A and B) touch the ground. Then, mark the crossbar where the weighted string passes.
Reverse the position of the A-frame's legs such that leg A is exactly on the same spot where leg B was and vice versa. Again, mark the crossbar when crossed by the string.
If the two marks exactly coincide, this means that you have the midpoint on the (crossbar) and the A-frame is standing on level ground.
If the marks are separate, make another mark at the midpoint between them.
To check accuracy, move one leg around until the string passes the level point of the crossbar. Mark the point where the adjusted leg touches the ground. Reverse the placement of the legs of the A-frame. If the string passes the same point, the level position has been located.
Appendix 2. Planting distance and uses of different fruit trees.
Fruit trees Scientific name Purposes/Uses* Distance (m)
Avocado Persea americana Fr, M, Fw 8-10
Balimbing Averrhoa carambola Fr, Fw 5-7
Calamansi Citrus microcarpia Fr, M 2-3
Cashew Anacardium occidentale Fr, Fw, Tm, M 8-9
Chico Manilkara zapota Fr 7-9
Durian Durio zibethinus Fr, Fw, TM 10-12
Guava Psidium guajava Fr, Fw, M 4 x 4
Jackfruit Artocarpus heterophyllus Fr, TM, M 8-10
Lanzones Lansium domesticum Fr, Fw, M 5-7
Mangosteen Garciana mangostana Fr, M 8-10
Papaya Carica papaya Fr, M 3 x 3
Pineapple Ananas comosus Fr, M 30 x 60 x 90**
Rambutan Nephelium lappaceum Fr, Fw 8-12
Siniguelas Spondia purpurea Fr 7-9
*Fr - fruit; Fw - fuelwood; TM - timber; M - medicinal
** in centimeters
Sources: Coronel, R. E. (1983). Promising Fruits of the Philippines (Laguna, Philippines); Samson, J. A. (1980). Tropical Fruits (New York, U.S.A.)

Appendix 3. Some recommended intercrops for fruits in SALT 4.
Fruit Fruit intercrops Cash crop intercrops
Atis Mango, chico, citrus, pineapple and papaya Annual field crops and vegetables
Avocado Papaya, pineapple, and banana Corn, mung beans, peanut, eggplant or sweet potato
Balimbing   Corn, mung beans, peanut, eggplant or sweet potato
Caimito Banana, lanzones and coffee Corn, root crops and other annual crops
Cashew Banana, papaya and pineapple Some annual field crops and vegetables
Chico Banana, papaya, pineapple, calamansi and atis Peanut and other legumes
Durian Banana and pineapple Corn, mung beans or peanut
Guava   Vegetable and short-term crops
Guyabano Avocado, santol, pineapple and papaya Cassava, ginger, cowpea and mung beans
Jackfruit Shade tree for coffee/black pepper Short-term crops
Lanzones   Corn, mung beans, bush sitao and other short-term crops
Mango Atis, guava, guyabano   
Mangosteen   Short-term crops
Marang   Short-term crops
Pili Banana, papaya and pineapple Field crops and vegetable
Rambutan   Annual crops and coffee/cacao
Rimas  Citrus, chico, atis, guyabano, pineapple, papaya and pineapple   
Santol   Many possible intercrops
Siniguelas Banana, papaya, and pineapple Field crops and vegetables
Source: Coronel, R. E. (1983). Promising Fruits of the Philippines.     

Appendix 4. Recommended harvesting time for Philippine fruits.
Fruits Seeds Asexual Propagation
Atis 2-4 years 1.5-2 years
Avocado 4-8 years 1-2 years; but should not be allowed to bear fruits until 4-5 years
Balimbing 4-6 years 2-3 years
Caimito 5-6 years 3-4 years
Cashew 3-4 years *
Chico 6-10 years 3-5 years
Durian 7-8 years 5-6 years
Guava 4-6 years 2-3 years
Guyabano 3-5 years 2-3 years
Lanzones 12-15 years 2-4 years (marcotted); 7-9 years (grafted)
Jackfruit 6-8 years 4-5 years (grafted)
Mango 5-7 years *
Mangosteen 10-15 years 7-9 years
Marang 4-6 years *
Pili 5-4 years 2-3 years
Rambutan 5-6 years 3-4 years
Rimas 8-10 years 3-4 years
Santol 5-7 years *
Siniguelas * 3-4 years (marcotted)
* Data not available
Source: Coronel, R.E. Promising Fruits of the Philippines
 
Source: Mindanao Baptist Rural Life Center Editorial Staff, 1997. How to Series No. 8, Davao del Sur, 24 p.