Title:	Babassu palm in the agroforestry systems in Brazil's Mid-North region.
Authors:	MAY, P. H. ANDERSON, A. B. FRAZÃO, J. M. F. BALICK, M. J.
Affiliation:	PETER H. MAY; ANTHONY B. ANDERSON; JOSÉ MÁRIO F. FRAZÃO, EMBRAPA-UEPAE de Teresina, PI; MICHAEL J. BALICK.
Date Issued:	1985
Citation:	Agroforestry Systems, v. 3, n. 3, p. 275-295, 1985.
Description:	Babassu palms (Orbignya spp.) cover nearly 200,000 km 2 in Brazil, providing cash income, fuel, fibre, edible oil and food to a large number of tenant farm households. Babassu is closely integrated within pastoral and shifting cultivation systems of Mid-North Brazil. In pastures, babassu provides shade for cattle, aids soil moisture retention, produces organic matter, generates supplementary farm income at little cost, and offers year-round employment. On the other hand, the persistence of juvenile palms reduces pasture grass productivity due to plant competition, and therefore there is a trend to eradicate babassu through clearcutting and understorey suppression. At moderate densities of less than 100 individuals per ha, mature babassu palms in cropland do not appear to harm crop productivity. In such cases, palms are thinned and leaves of the remaining ones are cut back, supplying fuel for the burn and nutrients to the soil. However, reduced fallow cycles due to pasture conversion threaten babassu as well as crop productivity.
Thesagro:	Babaçu Sistema de Produção
ISSN:	0167-4366
Type of Material:	Artigo de periódico
Access:	openAccess
Appears in Collections:	Artigo em periódico indexado (CPAMN)