Agriculture Reference
In-Depth Information
Smallholders derived the idea to integrate trees in their farms from several
sources but, in particular, from their social network, including relatives and neigh-
bors, and observations of tree growing in fields of co-farmers (54 percent, n = 78).
Often farmers feel it is their own idea to grow trees in their fields (31 percent),
which may indicate that tree growing is a traditional practice. Direct influence of
extension activities on farmers' tree integration behavior is contradicting; farmers
themselves do not often perceive extension as a major source of inspiration to grow
trees (12 percent). Yet of all respondents with trees in their fields, a much larger
percentage, i.e., 53 percent, had received some form of extension. However, since
farmers often imitate what is seen in farms in their surroundings, the impact of
farmer-farmer extension may be quite substantial. In 4 percent of the cases farmers
reported both extension as well as people from their social network that influenced
their decision to plant or retain trees in their farms.
When soliciting farmers' motivations for shifting from their current or past land
use into trees, i.e. not only for tree integration, their answers suggest that - in addi-
tion to those listed in Table 3.4 - four other factors affect tree integration: (a)
changes in profitability and productivity of competing crops, (b) lack of natural tree
supplies and (c) changing market imperatives for tree products, and (d) declining
soil conditions. In 27 percent of the cases with a planned shift in land use, the
planned change was associated with farmers dissatisfaction with seasonal corn
production due to declining output prices, rising input prices and lowered produc-
tivity. Whereas output satisfaction for yellow corn fields was achieved by only 42
percent of the households, purely perennial fields ranked highest in terms of farm-
ers' output satisfaction (100 percent).
The motivations for growing (more) trees on fields in the future, lie in the bene-
fits that can be derived from trees. Farmers in general mentioned several motiva-
tions for their planned land use change, most importantly, the current sale-ability
and profitability of fruits (13 percent) and the planting of trees for income diversi-
fication (12 percent) and pension provision (6 percent). Advantages associated with
tree production, such as, low labor requirements (5 percent) and modest capital
investments (5 percent) were also mentioned.
3.4 Discussion
Tree growing on farm fields is particularly common in upland areas and is, though
modestly, on the increase. Farmers are interested in growing trees mostly out of
economic and partly out of environmental considerations, whereas there is much
evidence that both push and pull factors are at work. Decreasing natural supplies of
trees coupled with augmenting market demand for farm-grown timber have resulted
in favorable prices for tree products (pull). This coincides with observations in
Kenya where similar dynamics proved to be an incentive to cultivate trees (Scherr
1995). On the other hand, disappointing productivity and profitability of seasonal
crops (mainly yellow corn) have encouraged farmers to orient themselves more on
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