PROGRESS IN EVALUATING FOREST FARMING

Abstract

The Tikitere forest farming research area was established in 1973 to determine the feasibility of integrating farming and forestry. This paper reports on progress in evaluating the effects of tree density and spatial arrangement on numbers and performance of livestock, and availability and productivity of pasture. Only 5 years after planting Pinus radiata (D. Don) into pasture there were large reductions in carrying capacity with increasing tree density, and it is apparent that a tree management regime leading to a final crop of 400 sph is unsuitable for combining with intensive livestock production. Individual livestock performance as measured by both liveweight change and wool production was poorer under trees, and a number of possible explanations are given, Availability of pasture for livestock was affected both by a reduction in dry matter production with increasing tree density and by the covering of ground with thinning and pruning debris. The effects of the latter on managing livestock under trees are discussed.