Building Resilience through Agroforestry

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Altair Rodríguez, founder of Finca Tierra Negra, grows crops such as plantains and cacao as part of an agroforestry system.

In the southeastern U.S. and the Caribbean, hurricanes, tropical storms and other extreme weather can cause devastating impacts to farmers’ crops. By implementing agroforestry, farmers can help to lessen the impacts of severe weather and increase their farm's resilience. Agroforestry involves integrating trees and/or shrubs into farming systems, according to the U.S. Forest Service.

Benefits of Agroforestry 

Agroforestry system at Finca Bien-Estar in Las Marías, Puerto Rico 

Agroforestry systems offer a variety of benefits to farmers who face the challenges posed by extreme weather. Some of these advantages include: 

• Absorbing more rainwater compared to monocrop systems 

• Retaining more water during droughts 

• Protecting crops such as plantains that are easily damaged by strong winds 

Agroforestry at Finca Tierra Negra 

Finca Tierra Negra in the Dominican Republic implements small-scale regenerative agroforestry systems to grow crops such as cacao and plantains – demonstrating the effectiveness of these resilient systems and a glimpse of what the future of agriculture could be. 

“Over the years, we've managed to demonstrate on a small scale that regenerative agroforestry systems are the best. They are the true future of agriculture, what the future should be,” says Altair Rodríguez, founder of Finca Tierra Negra – a family farm that has preserved traditional agroforestry systems. 

These systems “are the most resilient way to produce food,” she explains. “Only when we cover the soil can we better absorb the excess water that falls.”

Intense rains have become increasingly common, and agroforestry systems are better able to absorb brief, intense rainfall than monocropped systems, Altair adds. 

“In monocropped soil without vegetation cover, without organic matter, that water is washed away and ends up in rivers. That's why the rivers turn terribly brown [after heavy rains]. In covered soil, also filled with tree root systems, that water infiltrates [into the soil].” 

To learn more about Finca Tierra Negra and agroforestry, check out last month’s Voices of the Land newsletter and Finca Tierra Negra’s Spotlight video on our YouTube channel.