Disturbance, Succession, and Agroecosystem Management - Agroecology: The Ecology of Sustainable Food Systems - page 253

agroecosystems to those of disturbances in natural
ecosystems?

An organization dedicated to developing the
vision, design, ecology, and stewardship of
perennial polycultures of multipurpose plants
in small-scale settings.

2. Describe how the “analog model” for agroeco-

system design and management might be
applied in your own farming region. Be sure to
clearly indicate the successional stages your
system would need to go through and how they
mirror what happens in the natural ecosystems
that exist (or once existed) around your farm.

Holistic Management International
www.holisticmanagement.org
A natural-resource approach that uses ecological
processes, including succession, for pasture
and agroecosystem management.

3. Give some examples of how agroforestry sys-

tem design can be informed by knowledge
about the ecological impact of trees on the envi-
ronment, and how it can be shaped by the
farmer's need for particular products.

The Overstory
www.agroforestry.net/overstory
An agroforestry “ejournal,” focused on
homegardens.

4. How would you integrate both ecological bal-

ance and harvestability in the design of a home
garden agroforestry system specifically suited
to the location in which you live? Be sure to
describe both the ecological and cultural back-
ground that affect your design determinations.

Tropical Homegardens
www.css.cornell.edu/ecf3/Web/new/AF/home-
Gardens.html
An interesting learning module on tropical
homegardens by Professor Erick Fernandes
at Cornell University.

5. Why have trees disappeared from so many agri-

cultural landscapes over the past several
decades, especially in developed countries?

RECOMMENDED READING

6. From an agroecological perspective, what are

some of the most important relationships
between diversity and disturbance in sustain-
able agriculture?

Bazzaz, F.A. 1996. Plants in Changing Environments: Linking
Physiological, Population, and Community Ecology.
Cambridge University Press: Cambridge, UK. A global
overview of the interactions between plants and different
organisms as they participate in succession and ecosys-
tem recovery.
Biotropica. 1980. Volume 12. Special Issue on Tropical Succes-
sion. A collection of research papers that cover an array
of topics related to succession in tropical ecosystems
and agroecosystems.
Buck, L., J.P. Lassoie, and E.C.M. Fernandes (eds.), 1999.
Agroforestry in Sustainable Agricultural Systems.
Advances in Agroecology Series . CRC Press: Boca
Raton, FL. An excellent edited volume covering social,
ecological, and production aspects of agroforestry
research and practice in both tropical and temperate
regions.
Huxley, P. 1999. Tropical Agroforestry . Blackwell Science:
Oxford, UK. A comprehensive textbook covering
general aspects of agroforestry, with a focus on the
tropics.
Odum, E.P. 1969. The strategy of ecosystem development.
Science 164:262-270. A key paper for understanding
the relationship between succession and ecosystem
development.
Ronnenberg, K.L., G.A. Bradshaw, and P.A. Marquet (eds.),
2003. How Landscapes Change: Human Disturbance
and Ecosystem Fragmentation in the Americas. Eolog-
ical Studies 162 . Springer: Berlin & New York. A mul-
tidisciplinary overview of the interactions between
humans and ecosystem processes, and how they have
affected the landscapes of North and South America.

7. Describe how an agricultural landscape made up

of a mosaic of successional patches might be
described as a “polyculture of monocultures.”

INTERNET RESOURCES

World Agroforestry Centre
www.worldagroforestry.org
Considerable information about research and
development partnerships in the area of
agroforestry in the tropics, directed to-
wards reducing poverty and environmental
impacts.

Agroforestry Net
www.agroforestry.net
An organization based in Hawaii and focused
on the Pacific Islands.

Association for Temperate Agroforestry
www.aftaweb.org
An excellent source of information on agrofor-
estry systems suitable for more temperate
regions of the world.

Edible Forest Gardens
www.edibleforestgardens.com