The USDA National Agroforestry Center, Forest Farming eXtension program, Virginia Tech, Cornell University and Paul Smith’s College have partnered to create a series of videos detailing silvopasture practices. We take a look at three different farms to better understand how the practice of silvopasture can be adapted to best fit an individual’s goals.
An agroforestry practice, silvopasture integrates trees, pasture, and forage into a single system. Incorporating trees improves land health and significantly increases carbon sequestration.
SOLUTION SUMMARY*
Silvopasture is an ancient practice that integrates trees and pasture into a single system for raising livestock. Research suggests silvopasture far outpaces any grassland technique for counteracting the methane emissions of livestock and sequestering carbon under-hoof. Pastures strewn or crisscrossed with trees sequester five to ten times as much carbon as those of the same size that are treeless, storing it in both biomass and soil.
Carbon aside, the advantages of silvopasture are considerable, with financial benefits for farmers and ranchers. Livestock, trees, and any additional forestry products, such as nuts, fruit, and mushrooms, generate income on different time horizons. The health and productivity of both animals and the land improve. Because silvopasture systems are diversely productive and more resilient, farmers are better insulated from risk.
Silvopasture often runs counter to farming norms and can be costly and slow to implement. Peer-to-peer education has proven effective for spreading it. As the impacts of global warming progress, appeal will likely grow, because silvopasture can help farmers and their livestock adapt to erratic weather and increased drought. That is the climatic win-win of this solution: Silvopasture averts and sequesters emissions, while protecting against changes that are now inevitable.
IMPACT: We estimate that silvopasture is currently practiced on 550million hectares of land globally. If adoption expands to 720-772million hectares by 2050—out of the 823 million hectares theoretically suitable for silvopasture—carbon dioxide emissions can be reduced by 26.6-42.3 gigatons. This reduction is a result of the high annual carbon sequestration rate of 2.74 tons of carbon per hectare per yhttps://www.fs.usda.gov/nac/practices/silvopasture.phpear in soil and biomass. Farmers could realize financial gains from revenue diversification of $1.7-2.3 trillion, on investment of $206-273billion and lifetime operational cost of $2-3 trillion to implement.
Take a tour of silvopasture around the planet. This agricultural practice has been in use for centuries from the tropics to temperate climates. Learn about research on the utility of silvopastoral systems for agricultural production and their implication for contributing to an economically and environmentally resilient agriculture. Presenter: Ashley Conway, Ph.D., Assistant Research Professor; University of Missouri Center for Agroforestry. Recorded on April 14, 2020. More information and resources at: https://www.sfa-mn.org/silvopasture-a…
Steve Gabriel is an ecologist, forest farmer, and educator living in the Finger Lakes Region of New York State in the US. Throughout his career, Steve has taught thousands of farmers and land managers about the ways farming and forestry can be combined to both benefit the ecology and the bottom line of the farm.He is Agroforestry Extension Specialist for the Cornell Small Farm Program and has served as guest faculty at Cornell University, Sterling College,Paul Smiths College, and the Omega Center for Sustainable Living. Alongside his wife, Elizabeth, he co-stewards Wellspring Forest Farm, where they produce mushrooms, maple syrup, duck eggs, pastured lamb, and elderberry extract, all from forest based systems.Steve co-authored Farming the Woods with Ken Mudge in 2014, and is author of the new book Silvopasture, released in 2018. He passionately pursues work to reconnect people to the forested landscape and see the value of trees and forests as an essential part of a regenerative future.
*********************
Videos:
31.07.2018 The USDA National Agroforestry Center, Forest Farming eXtension program, Virginia Tech, Cornell University and Paul Smith’s College have partnered to create a series of videos detailing silvopasture practices. We take a look at three different farms to better understand how the practice of silvopasture can be adapted to best fit an individual’s goals.
*************************
2020
5.11.2020 Greg is fired up about his new silvopasture project. By focusing on keeping the best trees and making room for them to express themselves by removing the inferior trees, great things start to happen. Now with the sunlight being able to penetrate to the ground, forages can grow under the trees to support livestock and wildlife.
25.02.2020 In episode 22 of The Farm Hand’s Companion Show, Pa Mac demonstrates simple, timeless, and inexpensive methods and tools to clear land and turn forest into pasture for the small farm or homestead. And it can be accomplished by partnering with the very livestock (milk cow and other cattle, goats, sheep, horses, hogs, chickens, and geese, etc.) that will eventually benefit from a healthy, fertile pasture and hay meadow! Pa Mac also explains how all sizes of trees and brush can be put to good use to benefit soil fertility, as well as providing solutions for heat and homemade lumber needs.
10.02.2020 We have five head of Irish Dexter cattle. We have had them about a year and they are part of our effort to make a silvopasture out of some of the wooded area on the homestead.
2019
**************
Featured video:
27.11.2019 Mr. David Daigle raises cattle, timber and kids in the longleaf pine savanna of southwest Louisiana. In this video, he shares 37 years of his conservation knowledge with us and how he manages his grazing lands.
************
8.11.2019 Pat McCafferty visits Scottsville to talk with Chris-Fields Johnson about the benefits of integrating livestock into forest pastures, a practice also known as silvopasture.
4.11.2019 Follow our journey as we intensively create a silvopasture out of a 172-acre clear cut using Holistic Management and Permaculture.
29.12.2019 Meet Daniel Wolf, a beef rancher in Brazil who raises cattle using a silvopasture system. By using this practice, carbon emissions from cattle are sequestered by trees, leading to a negative carbon footprint, and increased biodiversity.
28.09.2019 Cattle mobs can do wondrous functions on our farm with proper grazing management. Creating silvopasture from useless brush is one of the best functions!
23.09.2019 Why goats? When it comes to clearing unwanted vegetation, goats can provide an ideal alternative to machines and herbicides. They graze in places that mowers can’t reach and humans don’t want to go Follow the progress at Wilhelm Farm as they integrate goats into their silvopasture project.
1.08.2019 Walnut trees are the most valuable trees that you can grow in Missouri. When you mix in mob grazing underneath them, everything turns to gold. Go to greenpasturesfarm.net for more grazing info.
31.05.2019 By thinning unmanaged brush and bringing in livestock, we are growing delicious food. Go to greenpasturesfarm.net for more info.
24.04.2019 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eCliff Davis of Spiral Ridge Permaculture claims Pigs will clear forests and help turn them into pasture and productive food forests, then he proves it’s all possible by showing us each step of the process (including the finished goods 🙂
28.02.2019 Taming the jungle and constructing Silvopastures for cattle, hogs and possibly poultry.
19.01.2019 Just before the snow came we headed out to landscape and design a silvopasture forage system for our goats. This meant thinning out an existing area of trees that the previous owners of the land had planted. They were all growing very close together meaning we could never efficiently use the area. Now we have thinned the trees and can start pollarding the remaining trees to encourage new growth to harvest as forage for the goats.
2018
3.10.2018 Another video of our livestock moving into a fresh paddock. I hope you enjoy the relaxing music, the Anatolian Shepherds, Sheep and Goats!
13.09.2018 Grasslands Manager Shane Hardy explains how pigs are used to steward the forested land at Stone Barns Center.
31.07.2018 The USDA National Agroforestry Center, Forest Farming eXtension program, Virginia Tech, Cornell University and Paul Smith’s College have partnered to create a series of videos detailing silvopasture practices. We take a look at three different farms to better understand how the practice of silvopasture can be adapted to best fit an individual’s goals.
14.03.2018 Steve Gabriel describes the potential for tree fodders in silvopasture (trees, livestock, forage) systems and highlights four of the top species for cool temperate climates; Willow, Black Locust, Mulberry, and Poplar. Learn more about the book at www.SilvopastureBook.com
7.03.2018 Hay from trees such as ash and elm is a traditional cattle and animal fodder. Tree hay from pollarding of trees is part of the traditional silvopasture agricultural system of agroforestry that predates the monocultures of modern farmimg methods that are so unsustainable for wildlife and the wider environment. About this video: Ted Green MBE, founder of the Ancient Tree Forum feeds treehay cut from Elm Farm hedges last summer to the cattle at Elm Farm. “Fantastic example of tree hay use, ash and service tree went down very well with your herd and shows why tree hay should be part of any agroforestry system with a pastoral element. I think about the bi-product of tree surgeons and landowners and how it could be put to use in agriculture. Thanks for a great video promoting this in such a simple way. Liked! and will be sharing this everywhere we can.”https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IH2OBN9c5-g&feature=emb_logo
1.03.2018 Webinar presented on 2.28.18 with Brett Chedzoy describing his farm and process implementing silvopasture on it. NOTE: There is some issues with audio, but the content is highly valuable!
24.02.2018
2017
29.09.2017 In this video, we scratch the surface of silvopasture and why it is important to implement on your homestead. We define it as well as show examples of how it has been implemented on our farm. Honestly, I didn’t know what it was until recently but realized I had been doing some aspects of it for years. Be sure to subscribe to our channel and support our efforts by giving us a thumbs up.
2.08.2017 Get a new perspective on integrating pasture management, agriculture and trees in this presentation by agroforester, Geoffrey Steen. Learn the theory and practice of incorporating beneficial trees into farm fields to be used as animal fodder, green manures, shade trees, windbreaks for crops (alley cropping), and also provide valuable edibles from fruits and nuts. Discover efficient ways to measure a field, how to decide what to plant, tree spacing and design development. Find great sources for obtaining tree stock and starting your own silvopasture system.
Forests are not in their natural state because huge herds of grazing and browsing animals are no longer free to roam-and fires have been contained so trees and understory are too dense. There are two ways to recreate historic Oak/Savannah that covered 55 million acres of the upper Midwest where I live. One is to thin existing forests and plant forage. The other is to strategically plant trees and shrubs in existing pasture. We are using both methods on our farm and hosted a workshop last summer put on by the Universities of Minnesota and Wisconsin about it all. Start doing this and you will leave a legacy that will improve forests, grasslands, and animals. It is a lot of work so don’t be intimidated . Just bite it off in small chunks and you’ll be amazed at how quickly it all becomes transformed.
2016
10.08.2016 Diversification of livestock and timber with using silvoculture practices can yield a higher income potential on a plot of land.
2015
25.12.2015 A Cat and Dog take the show – but somewhere in there I get a word or two in about silvopasture. Though I never say Silvopasture in the video, it is what I am describing. Combining Forestry with Pasture is Silvopasture, – and that is what we’ll be doing – large trees that produce a product (nuts, nectar, etc), while growing pasture below for grazing animals.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PgfF8UrfAsc
8.12.2015 The practice of integrating trees and animals is discussed by Co-author of Farming the Woods Steve Gabriel along with Brett Chedzoy and Joeseph Orifice as outlined in the book available at http://www.FarmingtheWoods.com This video was produced by the eXtension Forest Farming network for educational use. More videos on forest farming are available at https://www.youtube.com/user/exforest…
2014
28.09.2014 This is a quick look at some of the vegetation differences between a silvopasture which has been thinned and grazed for two years with and without controlled burning.
2013
27.08.2013 Agroforestry is a system of land management that involves the simultaneous cultivation of farm crops and trees. This video is one of a set of six, which focuses on a farm in Viola Wisconsin. The videos demonstrate practices and innovative techniques to help you understand how to incorporate agroforestry on your land. On-site interviews are combined with instructional video and narrated slides. Content specialists include scientists and outreach professionals.
2012
21.07.2012 The video considers three different forms of forest management that have given distinct characteristic to the British landscape.
2010
1.08.2010 Agroforestry Practices – Silvopasture – Center for Agroforestry 2004 – DVD AF1008 – University of Missouri Center for Agroforestry. Noncommercial use only, video used with permission. Silvopasture is the intentional combination of trees, forage and livestock managed as a single practice. In this segment, see examples of profitable silvopasture practices, including cattle with pecans. Considerations for establishing a successful silvopasture practice are also offered.
21.04.2010 Silvopasture is an agroforestry practice that integrates livestock, forage production, and forestry on the same management unit. These systems are deliberately designed and managed to produce high-value timber products for the long term while also providing short-term annual economic benefit from a livestock component through management of forage or an annual crop. Cattle and timber are affected by different market pressures. Silvopasture allows landowners to diversify their risk while realizing diverse income-generating possibilities from the same acreage. This management system may not be for everyone. It is important that you take into consideration all of your goals for your property when making any land management decision. But for many it is a way of life that allows them the flexibility to meet not only long and short term objectives, but also lifestyle and financial needs that are not addressed with traditional forest management systems.
