A CASE FOR ASSESSING ALLOCASUARINA AND CASUARINA SPP. FOR USE IN AGROECOSYSTEM IMPROVEMENT IN SEMI-ARID AREAS WITH A FOCUS ON CENTRAL ANATOLIA, TURKEY

Abstract

• Semi-arid ecosystems have been especially impacted by a long history of clearing, cropping and intensified grazing.

• Selection of tree species for assessment for agroforestry needs to consider their utility and effectiveness in provision of ecosystem service, but also the wider consideration of preserving biodiversity.

• Imperatives of agroecosystem services and biodiversity conservation (or restoration) will impact on species selection for agroforestry.

• The potential of Allocasuarina and Casuarina for wider economic and ecosystem needs an endeavor to achieve demonstrable gains.

Agroecosystems in water-limited contexts— Mediterranean, semi-arid and arid climatic zones—are too frequently degraded systems that will not provide the needed ecosystem services to ensure a future of sustainable agricultural production. The processes that have created this situation continue and are being accelerated by anthropogenic climate change. Increasing arboreal vegetation in these areas through agroforestry is an important strategy to conserve and improve their agroecosystems. Actinorhizal trees and shrubs in the Casurinaceae have a unique set of adaptations for heat and water stress, and/or infertile to hostile soils. Central Anatolia, Turkey is particularly at risk of increasing aridity and further degradation. Therefore, species of Allocasuarina and Casuarina have been evaluated for their potential use in agroecosystem improvement in semi-arid areas with a focus on Central Anatolia. Based on a semiquantitative environmental tolerance index and reported plant stature, eight species were identified as being of high (A. verticillata and C. pauper) to moderate (A. acutivalvis, A. decaisneana, A. dielsiana, A. huegeliana, C. cristata and C. obesa) priority for assessment, with none of these species having been adequately evaluated for agroforestry deployment in semi-arid agroecosystems in any context.

Graphical abstract

Keywords

actinorrhizal trees / agroforestry / climate change / ecosystem restoration

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