Relationship between fallow period, forest vegetation and weeds in swidden agriculture in northern Laos
| Autor: | Chika Kameda, Eiji Nawata |
|---|---|
| Rok vydání: | 2016 |
| Předmět: |
0106 biological sciences
Bamboo business.industry Agroforestry Forestry 04 agricultural and veterinary sciences Vegetation Livelihood 010603 evolutionary biology 01 natural sciences Summer fallow Geography Agronomy Abundance (ecology) Agriculture 040103 agronomy & agriculture Period (geology) 0401 agriculture forestry and fisheries Weed business Agronomy and Crop Science |
| Zdroj: | Agroforestry Systems. 91:553-564 |
| ISSN: | 1572-9680 0167-4366 |
| DOI: | 10.1007/s10457-016-9959-2 |
| Popis: | Weed suppression is an important reason for fallowing in swidden systems. Recently, in Laos, an increase in weeds and resulting increase in labor input has become a problem; however, causal factors influencing weed growth and weeding labor other than fallow period have yet to be fully examined. Therefore, an experimental research on swidden weeds, combining a forest survey and interviews with local farmers, was conducted in a mountain village in northern Laos where swidden agriculture is practiced as a major means of livelihood. Weed amount, weed composition and time required for weeding were found to be more influenced by fallow vegetation than fallow period. Bushy vegetation in a short fallow field was shown to lead to abundance of herbaceous weeds, resulting in higher labor input. There was a possibility that increases in some bamboo species were a cause of recent weed increases. Based on the results, we suggest that maintaining a minimum fallow period of forest fallowing, with fallow management to suppress bamboo and promote tree growth may be effective in reducing labor input in swidden agriculture. |
| Databáze: | OpenAIRE |
| Externí odkaz: |
|
Full text from SpringerLink