EVALUATION OF PRODUCTIVITY, PROFITABILITY, AND LAND USE EFFICIENCY OF DIVERSE TREE-BASED MULTISTORIED AGROFORESTRY SYSTEMS

Abstract

Multistoried agroforestry systems involve the integration of multiple layers of vegetation within an agricultural or forestry setting for increasing productivity, profitability, diversifying products, promoting land use efficiency and providing ecological service. Therefore, it is important to explore the benefits and opportunities offered by diverse agroforestry systems. A field experiment was carried out at the Agroforestry Research Field, Hajee Mohammad Danesh Science &Technology University in Dinajpur from April 2023 to July 2023 to study the performance of Snake gourd and stem amaranth in association with mango, litchi and mahogany trees as agroforestry system. The experiment was set following Randomized Complete Block Design (RCBD) with three replications. The five treatments were T1 = Mango trees + Snake gourd + Stem amaranth, T2 = Litchi trees + Snake gourd + Stem amaranth, T3 = Mahogany trees + Snake gourd + Stem amaranth, T4 = Sole cropping of snake gourd, T5 = Sole cropping of Stem amaranth. The data on growth, yield contributing characters and yield of Snake gourd and Stem amaranth were collected during this study with or without mango, litchi and mahogany tree combinations. The results of this study revealed that the growth parameters and yield of Snake gourd were found maximum in mango tree based agroforestry systems i.e. in T1 and the yield was 22.50 ton ha-1 while the lowest yield (9 ton ha-1) was recorded in the sole cropping of snake gourd. In the case of stem amaranth growth, yield attributes and yield (18.99 ton ha-1) were maximum in the mango tree-based agroforestry systems, i.e. T1 (Mango + Snake gourd + Stem amaranth). The maximum gross return was found in T3 (1015650 Tk. ha-1) and the lowest gross return was calculated from T5 (147100 Tk. ha-1). The net return was highest in T3 (723180 Tk. ha-1) and lowest in T5 ( 13160 Tk. ha-1). The Mahogany - Snake gourd – Stem amaranth (T3) multistoried agroforestry system performed the best, with a benefit-cost ratio (BCR) of 3.47. However, land equivalent ratio (LER) was the highest (3.04) in T2 (litchi – snake gourd – stem amaranth) agroforestry system. In a concluding remark, the research indicated that growing vegetables in the form of a multistory agroforestry system may result in increased yields and ensure economic benefits which can support food security and availability, and offer socially beneficial regulating functions.