Abstract

In humid tropical zones, the local inhabitants practice a shifting agriculture that rapidly erodes soil fertility. In order to regain lost fertility, it is necessary to discontinue cultivation of the land to allow forest regrowth. Legume plants seem to offer another possibility of replacing lost organic matter and mineral elements. The objectives of this project are to study the cultivation systems and rural use of forestry products in the forest area of Littoral and to observe the effects of legumes on the restoration of soil fertility.

Post-Project Summary

The study of the crop systems and rural use of forest products was carried out by means of a questionnaire survey of peasant farmers in the Edea region. The selection of legume tree species of value to agriculture and forestry was conducted by establishing two elimination trials over a total of 6 ha. The results obtained from three years of measurement of the trials showed Albizzia falcata, Leucocephala leucodendron, and Pithocolobium saman to be the most promising species. The project proceeded to artificially degrade 5 ha by planting food crops. A tree-food crop association trial was then conducted on 3 ha using two tree species and involving two espacements (spacing patterns). The object was to determine which species and espacements were appropriate for use in tree-food crop association planting. Only limited results were reported on this portion of the project, however, farmers appeared willing to be involved in tree-food crop association planting.

Recipient Institution(s)