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6. Planning for agroforestry.

Elsevier Science Publishers, Amsterdam, The Netherlands; ISBN 0-444-88634-6, 1990, price USD 89.75, Dfl. 175.00

This book incorporates selected contributions from an international symposium held in 1989 at Washington State University in the USA. It provides an overview of planting methods for agroforestry research and development projects, based on experience from the Centro Agron_mico

Tropical de Investigaci_n y Ensea (CATIE), CARE International, ICRAF, Washington State University, and the University of Wageningen (The Netherlands), among others. Discussions cover methods already in use and others currently under consideration.

Four chapters present various approaches to agroforestry planning, among these the diagnosis and design methodology developed at ICRAF. The rest of the book is devoted to accounts of field experience in Costa Rica, India, Indonesia, Kenya, Malawi, Sudan, and the islands of the Pacific.

Some of the key questions are:

- Planning for whom: Who are the farmers? What are their objectives and priorities? Or is the focus on the needs of the research, extension or government institution?

- Planning for what and in what context: Is the aim to design a project for research, for development, or both? Is the scale of planning at the macro (national, regional), meso (community, watershed, land-use system) or micro (household, farmer) level?

- What criteria should be used: How relevant are considerations such as biophysical and socio-economic indicators, adaptability/transferability, sustainability, institutional complementarity or scientific value?

- What method should be used: Techniques are available from fields such as land evaluation/landscape analysis, farming systems research and development, diagnosis and design, and agroecosystems analysis.

Each has strengths and they could be combined depending on objectives and resources.

As the editors state, "all these questions cannot be addressed with one planning method". However, there are a few important factors that must be considered in any planning exercise for agroforestry. These are integration, iteration, participation and sustainability. This book presents a range of both proven and new, innovative options.

It will be a valuable reference for anyone with a serious interest in agroforestry. It addresses the complexity of the planning process, focuses on critical issues and priorities, and provides much food for thought.

1167 92 - 7/81

Agroforestry

Review, book, tropics, temperate climate, forests, sowing methods, aerial seeding

BOSTID