Farm forestry
Topic: Natural Vegetation and Forests of India · NCERT: Class 11, Ch 5 "Natural Vegetation"
Meaning
Farm forestry means farmers growing trees on their own land. They plant on field edges, in pastures and around homes and cowsheds. The trees may be sold for money or used at home for fuel, fodder and timber. State forest departments give free seedlings (young plants) to small and medium farmers to encourage this. NCERT lists farm forestry as one of the three types of social forestry, along with urban and rural forestry.
Example
In Punjab and Haryana, farmers plant poplar and eucalyptus along the edges of their fields. They later sell the wood, which adds to their income from crops.
Don't confuse with
- Community forestry: trees grown on common land, such as village pastures, roadsides and canal banks, for the whole community. Farm forestry is on a farmer's own private land.