Originally published on Policy Options February 1, 2008. You are welcome to republish this Policy Options article online and in print periodicals. Examples of crops include mushrooms, ramps, nut trees, and more. In addition to enhancing potential carbon sequestra- tion and reducing greenhouse gases (GHGs), the incorporation of trees into predominantly agricultural landscapes has environmental benefits including enhanced soil conservation, nutrient management and water quality. TBI systems, which consist of widely spaced tree rows with annual alley crops, are multifunctional and provide landowners with a large range of economic and environmental benefits. Howe, One Hundred Years of Prairie Forestry (1986). Thus there are a number of activi- ties related to agroforestry across the country, generated by various agencies. Windbreaks also buffer daily temperature extremes and reduce evapotranspiration rates. Canada H3A 1T1, Privacy Policy | In our view, agroforestry offers long-term rural landscape sustainabili- ty and provides economic resilience through income diversification to the Canadian family farm. Severe overstocking combined with a fragile environment led to major land degradation, and severe desertification was noticed as early as 1910. In Canada, agroforestry systems are classified according to descriptions adopted by the Association for Temperate Agroforestry: integrated riparian systems, intercropping, windbreaks (shelterbelts), forest farming, and silvopastoral systems. In 2003, in an effort to improve the communication and research endeavours and provide agroforestry with a national voice, several individuals from across the country applied to the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada (NSERC) for funding to develop the Canadian Agroforestry/Afforestation Research Network (CAARN). This year the facility will bringing the total number of taps to 1,000, boiling and producing maple syrup on-site, conducting forestry tours, and hosting pancake breakfasts. If you’ve got an interest in the natural environment and want to start a career in forest management, here’s what you need to know. Plant and maintain a shelterbelt, control weeds and grow trees, shrubs. Agroforestry is an intensive land management system that integrates the benefits from biological interactions created when trees or shrubs are intentionally grown with crops or livestock. The recent trend of dwindling com- modity prices " particularly in the prairies " and increasing input and transportation costs have resulted in the declining economic viability of tradition- al cropping systems and a need to diversify farming systems toward value-added products and the bioeconomy. Kemptville, Ontario. Therefore there is little driving need for the wise incorporation of trees into farming systems, and the receptivity of the farming community to agroforestry practices is higher in countries with lit- tle forest cover.