North American Agroforestry. Группа авторов

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North American Agroforestry - Группа авторов


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ratio for U.S. soybean production is 4.15:1; Ohio alfalfa is 6.17:1; corn and wheat are around 2.5:1. So, 5:1 is a reasonable upper end to scale.

Schematic illustration of example of an amoeba diagram.

       (adapted from Bell & Morse, 2000).

      Amoeba diagrams do not provide a composite value for sustainability. They are a visual representation that effectively gives equal weight to each index that will allow comparison and interpretation. Collecting the same set of data on the sustainable indicators with time, the user can see which areas are improving and which are declining while still getting a sense of the overall sustainability of the system.

      Sustainability indices can also be assessed in more quantitative terms. We have undertaken a quantitative comparison of two synthetic farms modeled from regional data (Table 3–5). One of the synthetic farms is the conventional corn–soybean farm described in Appendix 3‐1, while the other is a more diversified farm that incorporates windbreaks, an herbaceous perennial crop, and two woody perennial crops in block plantings.


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Characteristic Conventional farm Agroforestry farm
Size, ha (acres) 264 (650) 172 (425)
Rented land, % 55 0
Crops, ha (acres)
Corn 132 (325) 34 (83)
Soybean 132 (325) 61 (151)
Grain sorghum 34 (83)
Alfalfa 24 (60)
Christmas trees 4 (9)
Hazel nut production 6 (16)
Windbreaks 9 (23)
Area in perennials, % 0