Agroforestry

Agroforestry practices include shelterbelts, silvopasture, and riparian buffer zones.

Shelterbelts are rows of trees or shrubs planted around homes, animal shelters or farmland. They provide beneficial services by reducing wind speed and erosion potential, trapping snow, and increasing the aesthetic value of rural homes.

Silvopasture incorporates woody crop species onto the grazing landscape. This practice adds a secondary source of income (wood or another product derived from woody crop) while providing shelter and aesthetic value.

Riparian buffers are wooded areas that lie between managed agricultural land and surface water resources, such as rivers, streams, lakes and sloughs. In many instances riparian buffers have been converted to arable land, however, re-establishment of trees and shrubs in cleared riparian areas are encouraged as a long-term best management practice. Riparian buffers are critically important, as they provide many ecological services and enhance biodiversity on the prairie landscape.