Trees as fodder crops

TL;DR: Concepts used by various authors are analyzed in order to define agroforestry and discuss, in detail, some ambiguous terms often encountered (biological and economic interactions, time sequences, etc.).

TL;DR: A brief review of the main environmental service functions that are provided by agroforestry systems (AFS): maintenance of soil fertility/reducing erosion via organic matter inputs to the soil, nitrogen fixation and nutrient recycling; conservation of water (quantity and quality) via greater infiltration and reduced surface runoff that could contaminate water courses; carbon capture, emphasizing the potential of silvopastoral systems; and biodiversity conservation in fragmented landscapes as mentioned in this paper.

TL;DR: Legumes have been used in agriculture since ancient times as discussed by the authors and have become important as high quality forages for livestock both in cultivated pastures and in naturally occurring associations in more recent times.

TL;DR: Wood members of the Leguminosae are being introduced and planted as exotics on an unprecedented scale throughout the tropics, and it is shown that some woody legumes exhibit particularly aggressive combinations of frequent early flowering, successful seed dispersal and seed longevity.