Agroforestry in temperate climes

This blog came out of the (short) walk I did two weeks ago (see last blog). It seemed to merit its own space.

I tend to think of agroforestry as a tropical thing: vanilla pods being wound up coconut trees, while coffee and cassava mature in the shade. OK - perhaps I am mixing my agro-ecosystems up here – but you get the picture! On a recent walk in Belgium, I came across agroforestry in action in the temperate north – a place where I wouldn’t expect it.

It was an orchard on the estate of the Hulp Chateau where they were growing rare and endangered varieties of fruit trees. The powers of globalization - sucking in exports from European countries where labour is cheaper – and wanting uniform products delivered on specific dates - means that Belgium has lost 80% of its orchards and the apple and pear varieties grown have been decimated. This site is preserving those species endangered by hyper-commercialization - but actually does much more.

It marries conserving rare apple and pear (and other fruit) trees with a low intensity grazing regime. As such it has a number of synergies. The cows keep the grass short (no need for spraying agrochemicals or mechanical controls) and also fertilize the soil – recycling its nutrients. Having grass cover prevents soil and nutrient erosion.

It was a real treat to see this lovely, vibrant, orchard with the cows grazing contently underneath the canopies of the trees. So different from the tightly packed rows of miniaturised trees (bred thus for easier picking) standing on bare soil - that pass for orchards these days. It’s a shame that there was no visible sales point. I’m sure the juices from this orchard taste delicious.

Such approaches don’t need to rely on CSOs or NGOs. Driving down the back roads from Halle to Bruxelles earlier in the summer I passed a farm where there were cows grazing and chickens pecking in an orchard. I did a three point turn and went back to find the farmyard. ‘Can you sell me a chicken?’ (I fancied an organic roast that weekend) No, they don’t sell them (they probably keep them for themselves and their neighbours). But they did have potatoes and eggs for sale. Ah well that’s good enough. A ‘tortilla á la paysan’ was on the cards. It was good to see traditional farming practices still in place 20km outside of Bruxelles – and no – they weren’t organic - it was just the way they learned, and like, to farm!