Apply by September 1, 2022.
Are you interested in adding trees to your farm to increase biodiversity and improve your bottom line? We’ve teamed up with Western Pennsylvania Conservancy and agroforestry consultants to offer technical services to farmers in western Pennsylvania interested in planting trees on their farms for alley cropping and/or silvopasture.
Alley cropping is the intentional integration of income-producing trees or shrubs with annual or perennial crops in alternating alleyways—for example, planting rows of apple trees and growing grain crops in the strips between them. There are many different possibilities, and all contribute toward a more biodiverse and economically diverse farm.
Silvopasture is the intentional integration of livestock and trees, in this case by adding trees to pasture or cropland. Silvopasture is also designed to promote biodiversity, income diversity, reduced feed costs, and provides many natural resource benefits.
Are you a farmer interested in designing plans for and eventually implementing either of these agroforestry practices? We are looking for three to five farms to develop designs for incorporating alley cropping into their operations, and three to five livestock farms to develop designs for incorporating silvopasture into their operations. Future stages could include project installation, and farms serving as agroforestry demonstration sites.
This project will involve a year-long process in which selected farms will receive support in the design of an alley cropping or silvopasture plan tailored to their particular goals and farm operation. Given the one-year limit of our funding, project installation will not be included, but landowners will be well positioned to apply for installation funding at the end of the year.
The collaborative process between selected farms, Pasa, Western Pennsylvania Conservancy, and project consultants will work to identify goals, challenges, opportunities, and desired outcomes for the alley cropping or silvopasture system, taking into account the larger biophysical, social, and economic realities of the farm.
If you are interested in applying to participate in this initiative, please contact Alysha B. Trexler at Western Pennsylvania Conservancy at atrexler@paconserve.org.
This project is supported by a grant from the R.K. Mellon Foundation.
