Can farms and forests live side by side?

Farmers have traditionally been seen as an enemy of the endangered rainforest as countless stories detail cases where trees have been burnt or cut down to make room for more profitable crops. This image may soon be a thing of the past however, following the release of new research, which suggests almost half of farmland around the world has at least ten per cent tree cover.

Presenting the report, Dennis Garrity, the director general of the world Agroforestry Centre in Nairobi, said many farmers were already "protecting and planting trees spontaneously".

Perhaps controversially, the analysis suggests those farming most intensively are also those who are planting the most trees. To give an idea of the scale of the findings, Mr Garrity described the area covered as equivalent to two Amazon rainforests.

Based on data from satellite images, the report is the first global study of tree cover on farms. It found tree canopies made-up more than ten percent of farmland spread across ten million square kilometres. The researchers' calculations indicate this quantity represents 46 per cent of all agricultural land - an area the size of China.

Mr Garrity questioned the wisdom of policymakers who have so far failed to recognise the phenomenon and take advantage of its beneficial effects. He said: "Trees are providing farmers with everything from carbon sequestration to nuts and fruits, to windbreaks and erosion control, to fuel for heating and timber for housing.

"Unless such practices are brought to scale in farming communities worldwide, we will not benefit from the full value trees can bring to livelihoods and landscapes."

Inaccurate information about farmland forests is common among scientists and environmentalists, complains the report's author Robert Zomer. "The lack of data and more fundamental misconceptions of what agroforestry is has led to an assumption it is globally of little importance, even by people who should know better," he said.

He pointed to an earlier International Assessment of Agricultural Science and Technology report, which suggested any attempts to combine forests with livestock or crops were rare and, more often than not, failures. By contrast, Mr Zomer discovered even densely populated areas, such as south-east Asia, typically have around one-third of farmland covered by trees.

Researchers at the centre admit the scale of the project prevents them from formulating an exhaustive list of all products and services trees can offer.

However, their research does document a wide variety of uses including trees, which can fertilize crops and improve yields while others provide food and shelter for humans and livestock, or even natural medicines.

Equally important, noted the study, is the wider positive impact planting trees can have on an environment, such as erosion control, water quality and biodiversity. Tony Simons, the centre's deputy director, suggested systematic planting could help improve the resilience of farmers by providing them with food and extra income.

"For example, when crops and livestock fail, trees often withstand drought conditions and allow people to hold over until the next season."

"What trees essentially provide to farmers is choice. Choice of enterprise, choice of market, choice for diversification, choice for low labour requirement, choice for multiple function," Mr Simons continued.

The study suggests those living in developing countries may have the most to gain from this degree of variety.

Western Europe and North America have a selection of around 250 and 600 native tree species respectively. The poorest tropics however have an astounding 50,000 different types of tree. According to Mr Simons: "The priority is to find the right tree for the right place for the right use."

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