Special issue: agroforestry

Abstract

It is the policy of the Queensland government to encourage landholders to plan their land use, and to maintain adequate tree cover on areas which are unstable or unsuited for food production. The management of existing trees on farms, and the planning and development of new plantings can fulfil the 6 basic objectives of this policy, which are the control of salinity, stabilization of erodible areas, provision of shelter and windbreaks, maintenance of water quality, wildlife conservation, and provision of timber for farm and commercial use.

The 21 papers in this special agroforestry edition of the Queensland Agricultural Journal outline simple and practical ways for landholders to deal with these issues, providing guidelines on the planting and maintenance of a healthy tree cover. The term agroforestry is used in its broadest sense to include any use of trees on farms. The papers included are: Rural tree dieback (Wylie, F.R.; Johnston, P.J.M.); Trees and erosion control (Houghton, D.); Trees and salinity (Hughes, K.K.); Forest clearing and landslides on the basalt plateau of south east Queensland (Willmott, W.F.); Cattle need shade trees (Daly, J.J.); Plotting a better future for lambs: a practical guide to providing shade (Roberts, G.); Tree clearing and the community (Dawson, N.M.); On-farm nature conservation (James, J.); Trees in the landscape (Kleinschmidt, H.E.); A tree planting project in the Brisbane Valley (Cameron, D.M.; Patterson, R.D.); Greening Australia (Scott, P.D.); Tropical pastures in eucalypt [Eucalyptus maculata and E. acmenoides] forest near Gympie (Cook, B.G.; Garthe, R.J.; Grimes, R.F.); Gympie messmate [E. cloeziana] reforestation potential in the Wide Bay region (Garthe, R.J.); Forest and water: just what is known? (Cassells, D.S.); How to grow hoop pine [Araucaria cunninghamii] on farms (Ryan, P.A.; Lewty, M.J.); Management options for hoop pine on farms (Powell, M.B.; Master, R.W.C.); Planting Caribbean pine [Pinus caribaea] on the Atherton Tableland (Anderson, T.M.; Harvey, A.M.; Nicholson, D.I.); Trees and the farm plan (Houghton, D.); The Men of the Trees (Robinson, K.N.) - a tree planting and preservation society; Save us from a brown Australia - give us a hand to green Australia (Water Research Foundation of Australia Limited); and Casuarina dieback in the May River catchment (Johnston, P.J.M.; Wylie, F.R.).