Today we answer the question: what is Dynamic Agroforestry and how does it present an alternative to unsustainable agriculture?Read More

DAF is a farming system with dense, diverse planting and regular pruning, designed to maximize biomass growth without external inputs. A 14-year field trial shows that DAF systems store 66 t C ha⁻¹ in biomass — over twice as much as conventional monocultures (~26 t C ha⁻¹)Read More

Conventional agricultural practices typically focus on maximizing the yield of a single crop through monoculture. While this approach may offer short-term productivity, it demands high inputs such as intensive land preparation, synthetic fertilizers, herbicides, and pesticides. In contrast, Dynamic Agroforestry (DAF) presents an integrated approach, leveraging ecological principles to enhance overall productivity, reduce external inputs, and provide...Read More

This study finds that using locally-selected cocoa clones can significantly boost cocoa yields. Conducted over five years in Bolivia, the research compared the performance of local clones against widely-used international varieties and found that local clones produced two to five times more cocoa beans. These clones also had larger pods and therefore required fewer pods...Read More

A long-term field trial conducted in Bolivia by Schneider et al. compared cocoa monocultures and agroforestry systems under both conventional and organic management. The study found that while conventional monocultures produced the highest cocoa yields initially, agroforestry systems significantly outperformed monocultures in total system yields when considering all marketable products, such as bananas and other...Read More

This study explores the differences between growing cocoa in monocultures and dynamic agroforestry systems (DAF), focusing on smallholder farmers in Bolivia and Côte d’Ivoire. Monoculture cocoa farming often leads to problems like soil degradation, loss of biodiversity, and increased vulnerability to pests, diseases, and climate change. In contrast, DAF mimics natural forests by integrating a...Read More

The study investigated whether cacao agroforestry systems lead to higher pest and disease incidence compared to monocultures. Contrary to traditional beliefs, the study found that when good cultural management practices—such as regular pruning, frequent harvesting, and prompt removal of diseased pods—are implemented, agroforestry systems do not have higher pest and disease rates than monocultures. In...Read More