FinalReport:CropPerformance,Pests,andPollinatorsinDiverseAgroforestrySystems

SustainableAgricultureResearch&EducationPartnershipGrant

NorthCentralRegion

August28,2017

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TableofContentsAbstract..........................................................................................................................................2

ProjectObjectives..........................................................................................................................2RESEARCH................................................................................................................................................2OUTREACH...............................................................................................................................................2

Background....................................................................................................................................3

Farms..............................................................................................................................................3

CropPerformance..........................................................................................................................3Managementapproach...........................................................................................................................4Varietyselection......................................................................................................................................5Treeprotection........................................................................................................................................5

PlantPathogens.............................................................................................................................5

ArthropodDiversity&Abundance.................................................................................................6

Outreach........................................................................................................................................7TimelapsePhotography...........................................................................................................................7ResultsDissemination..............................................................................................................................7

Outcomes&Impact.......................................................................................................................8

Acknowledgements........................................................................................................................8

Tables.............................................................................................................................................9

Figures..........................................................................................................................................11

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AbstractDiverseAgroforestry(DA)systemsoffermanybenefitsforfarmersandsociety.Despite

theincreasingimplementationofthesesystemsatrelativelylargescales,therehasbeennorigorouson-farmevaluationoftheimpactofvariousmanagementstrategiesontheirperformance,pestissues,andbenefittopollinators.TheinherentcomplexityofDAsystemsmakeseffectiveresearchandoutreachdifficult,especiallywhenworkingwithadistributednetworkoffarms.FourcollaboratingMidwestfarmersintheSavannaInstitute’sCaseStudyProgrampartneredwithSavannaInstitutestaffandanentomologistinterntoevaluatethegrowthofDAsystemsacrossarangeofmanagementstrategies,identifybaselinepollinatorcommunities,andmonitorcroppathogens.Todisseminateresults,amulti-facetededucationandoutreachapproachleveragedtimelapsevideos,on-farmfielddays,andadigital/printedbulletin.Resultsofgrowthdatasuggestthatmanagementapproacheshaveadramaticimpactoncropsurvivalandgrowth.Weedcontrolanddiseasemanagementseemtobethekeyfactorsdrivinggrowthdifferences.FungalpathogenswerethedominantpestsobservedintheDAsystemsacrossfarms.AlthoughnopathogensweredocumentedthatarenoveltotheNorthCentralRegion,thecataloguedpestswillprovidefuturefarmerswithkeymonitoringtargetwithintheDAcrops.ThehighaverageabundanceofarthropodsobservedinDAsystemssuggeststhat,evenearlyintheirlifecycle,DAsystemshostbeesandotherpollinatorsbetterthanrowcropswhileyieldingadiversesetofhigh-valuecropscomparedtohay.

ProjectObjectivesRESEARCH

1) EvaluatethegrowthandyieldofDAsystemsacrossarangeofmanagementstrategies

2) IdentifybaselinepollinatorcommunitiespresentinandinteractingwithDAsystemscomparedtoadjacentland-uses

3) Identify&monitorpestsaffectingthenovelwoodyperennialcropsinDAsystemsOUTREACH

1) Documenttheestablishment&growthofDAsystemsviatime-lapsephotography2) Distributeresultsviaprintedmaterials,onlinemedia,andfielddays

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BackgroundDiverseAgroforestry(DA)systemsintegratingfruit,nutandforagecomponentshave

potentialtorestoreecosystemserviceswhilesimultaneouslyprovidingeconomicallyviableandnutritionallyvaluablestaple-foodcropsatindustrialquantities.Despitetheincreasingimplementationofthesesystems–withcorecropssuchashazelnut,chestnut,currantandapple–therehasbeennorigorouson-farmevaluationoftheimpactofvariousmanagementstrategiesonthegrowthandyieldofthesesystems.Furthermore,manyofthecomponentcropsdrivingtheadoptionofDAsystemsarerelativelynoveltotheMidwest.Littleisknownaboutthepests/pathogensofthesecropsinthisregion,especiallyinaDAcontext.AlthoughDAsystemsareinherentlydiverse,andmatureagroforestrysystemsareknowntoincreasediversityofarthropodcommunities,verylittleisknownaboutthepotentialofyoungDAsystemstofosterarthropoddiversity.

TheSavannaInstituteinitiatedaCaseStudyProgramin2014toaidandlearnfromfarmersestablishingDAsystems.FarmersintheCaseStudyProgramvoluntarilydocumentcashflow,labor,inputs,andmanagementtechniquesintheirDAenterprise.ThisprojectisanextensionoftheCaseStudyProgram,workingmoredeeplywithfourdedicatedfarmerstoexplorespecificresearchobjectivesontheperformance,pests,andpollinatorsinDA.

FarmsFourfarmswereselectedfromexistingCaseStudyfarmstoconductmoreintensive

researchandoutreachunderthisprojectbasedon:1) DASystemSimilarity:CooperatingfarmscontainDAsystemsofsimilarcomposition.2) ManagementStrategy:Onefarmwasselectedforeachofthefollowing

managementstrategies:High-Input,High-Labor;Low-Input,High-Labor;High-Input,Low-Labor;andLow-Input,Low-Labor.

3) Location:Farmswereselectedtominimizetravel.Collaboratingfarmersincluded:

• CatheCapel–VulcanFarm–ChampaignCounty,IL(High-Input,High-Labor)• KatePotter–SunDappledFarm–PeoriaCounty,IL(Low-Input,Low-Labor)• MarciaPowell–LockieFarm–ChampaignCounty,IL(Low-Input,High-Labor)• ScottWilliams–FieldsRestored–OgleCounty,IL(High-Input,Low-Labor)

TheDAsystemsoneachfarmincludedrowsoffruitandnuttreesandshrubswithalleys

ofgrassoralfalfahay.Farmswereestablishedbetween2013and2015.Collaboratingfarmerswereexpectedtospendapproximatelytwohoursperweekcollectingon-farmdataassociatedwiththisproject,inexchangeforanhonorarium.RepresentativephotosfromeachforthefourcollaboratingfarmsareshowninFigure1.

CropPerformanceSmallyieldswereobtainedacrossallcollaboratingfarmsduringthisprojectduetotheir

young,establishingnature(Figure2).Mostofthecoreproductivecropsemphasizedateach

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farmwerenotyetofbearingageduringthisproject.Consequently,weoptedtofocusonplantgrowthratherthanplantyieldsasourprimarymetricforperformance.Accuratelyquantifyingwoodycropgrowthisdifficultforfarmers.Toaccomplishthisgoal,theSavannaInstitutefieldresearchinternmeasuredgrowthannuallyviastemdiametermeasurementsusingadigitalcaliper.Thisgrowthdata,inconjunctionwithfarmercensusesofplantsurvival,offeredinsightintocropresponsestomanagementinDAsystems.Belowwepresent,severaldifferentexperimentsofcropperformanceasafunctionofthreecriticaltools:managementregime,varietyselection,andtreeprotection.

Managementapproach ThemostcommonandhighestpriorityquestionsthattheSavannaInstitutereceivesfromCastStudyfarmersallrelatetomanagementofcropsafterestablishment.CaseStudyfarmersadoptawiderangeofmanagementregimes,rangingfromlowtohighlabor(e.g.mulching,pruning)andlowtohighinputs(e.g.fertilizer,herbicide).ThefourcollaboratingfarmsstudiedinthisprojectspanthisspectrumandcanprovidesomegeneralinsightsintooptimalmanagementofDAsystems. Therelativegrowthoffourselectedspeciesthatwerepresentonallcollaboratingfarms–apple,Chinesechestnut,hybridhazelnut,andhybridpoplar–ispresentedhere.Throughoutthedurationofthisproject,relativebasalstemareagrowthrangedfrom-100%(wholesaledeath)to800%(Figure3).Datafromthelow-input,low-laborfarmwerenotcollectedattheendoftheprojectbecausemostplantshadeitherdiedorwereimpossibletofindamongtheweedspresentonthefarm.Thisisanimportantfirstconclusion,inthatcombiningbothlow-inputandlow-labormanagementapproachesprovedhighlyunsuccessfulasweedscompletelytookover.Inasimilarlight,overallresultsfromthehigh-input,high-laborfarmwerenotdramaticallybetterthanwhenjusthigh-inputorhigh-laborwereappliedsingularly. Forapple,bothVulcanfarmandLockieFarmexperiencedwholesalegraftfailure,resultinginsmallerplantsattheendoftheproject.FieldsRestored,however,hasnotyetattemptedtografttheirapples,sogrowthwasstillpositive.Chinesechestnutgrowthwassimilaracrossfarms.Despitethehigh-input,high-laborapproachatVulcanFarm,chestnutsdidnotgrowanyfasterthantheotherfarms.Severalenvironmentalfactors,suchasdroughtandfloodingatvarioustimes,mayhavecontributedtothis,suggestingthatenvironmentalfactorscantrumpeventhebestmanagementdependingonthespeciesandscenario.Hybridhazelnutgrowthwashigherinthelow-inputfarmcomparedtotheothertwohigh-inputfarms.Thismaybetheresultoffertilizerstuntinggrowthinthehazelnuts,whichhasbeendocumentedinpreviousstudies.Thisreiteratesthatmanagementmustspecies-specific;notalltree/shrubspecieshavethesamerequirementsorresponses.Finally,hybridpoplarwastheonlyspeciesforwhichthehigh-input,high-laborapproachatVulcanFarmcontributedtodramaticallyimprovedsuccess.Hybridpoplarisanextremelyfast-growingspeciesthatishighlyresponsivetofertilizerinputsandreducedcompetition.Forthisreason,hybridpoplargrowthseemedtoincreasewithanyincreasesinmanagementintensity.

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Varietyselection Beforeafarmerevenhastheopportunitytomanagetheirplantsforoptimalgrowth,muchofaplant’sdensityhasalreadybeendeterminedgenetically.Whilevarietyselectioniswildlyknowntobecriticalfordiseaseresistance,fruitquality,andyield,itislessoftenthoughtofasfundamentaltoplantestablishmentandgrowth.Here,weusedchestnutsatLockieFarmasacasestudyoftheimpactthatgeneticshaveevenintheearlyyearsofplantgrowthinDA.BasalstemareavariedsignificantlyacrosstenChinesechestnutvarietiesbytheendoftheproject(Kruskal-Wallis,p<0.001)(Figure4).Overall,therewasatwo-foldrangeinbasalstemdiameterafterjusttwoyearsofgrowth.TheseresultssuggestthatvarietyselectioncouldplayanevenlargerrolethanplantmanagementinthesuccessfulestablishmentandearlygrowthoftreesinDAsystems.Treeprotection

OnecriticalaspectofcropmanagementintheearlyyearsofDAsystemsistreetrunkprotectionfromherbivoredamage.ThisisbyfarthemostcommonmanagementtechniqueadoptedbyCaseStudyfarmerstodate.Here,weusedhybridpoplaronVulcanFarm(thefarmwiththehighestdeerpressureofallcollaboratingfarms)ascasestudyoftheimpactthattreeprotectionwithplastictreetubeshasonplanthealth.Whilefarmerstypicallythinkoftreetubesasprotectingtreesfromdeerbrowse,hybridpoplargrowsorapidlythattheirgrowthtipsaretypicallyoutofdeerrangequitequickly.Instead,theprimaryissuewithdeerencounteredatVulcanFarmwasdeerantlerrubbingonthepoplartreetrunks.Sincethehybridpoplarwerebyfarthelargesttreesontheyoungfarm,thedeerdirectedthebruntoftheirrubbingonthem.

Thefrequencyofseveredeerantlerrubbingonhybridpoplarwasdependentontheuseof4’plastictreetubes(X2=56.8,df=3,p<0.01)(Table1).Eventhoughmuchrubbingwasobservedabove4’ontreeswithouttubes,therewasnosevererubbingonanytreeswith4’treetubes(Figure5).Thisindicatesthat,beyondphysicalprotectionofthetree,thetreetubesalsoactindirectlytodeterthedeerfromrubbing.Ourbestguessisthatthenoisecreatedbytheplastictubeswhenthedeerattempttorubonthosetreesisatplayhere.Fortreeswithouttreetubes,therewasahighfrequencyofseveredeerantlerrubbingacrosspruningapproaches,althoughthedamagefrequencywashigherintreesthathadallbranchesprunedinthefall(71%)thanintreesthathadnopruning(44%).Thereisaclearinteractiveeffectbetweennotreetubeandpruningapproach.Withnopruning,thehybridpoplartreeshadmanylateralbranches,evenaslowas2’offtheground.Thefallpruningapproachtoprunealllateralbrancheswasinitiatedbythefarmertoseeifthiswouldencouragethetreestogrowtallermorequickly.However,itseemsthatpruningoffthelateralbranchesmadethetreesmuchmoreappealingforantlerrubbing.Thisislikelybecausethelateralbranchescanbeuncomfortabletothedeerastheyrub,possiblypokingthemintheeyesorotheruncomfortableplaces.

PlantPathogensEachofthefourcollaboratingfarmswasvisitedmonthlybytheSavannaInstitute’sfield

researchinternduringthe2015and2016growingseasons(typicallyMay-September)toscout

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forandcollectsamplesofplantpests(Figure6).Farmersaidedinthescoutingusingtheirobservationsofcropsduringthepriormonth.ThelackofsubstantialinsectpestsobservedoncropsacrossallcollaboratingfarmsleadustofocusprimarilyonplantpathogensastheprimarypestsinDAsystems.Nosubstantialdifferencesinpathogenabundancewereobservedacrossthecollaboratingfarms,soallresultswerepooledhere.CollectedsamplesofdiseasedplanttissuesweresubmittedtotheUniversityofIllinoisExtension’sPlantClinicforidentification.

Intotal,17pathogenspecieswereobservedon11plantspeciesacrossallfarms(Table2).Allobservedpathogenissueswerefungaldiseases.FungaldiseasesmaybeexacerbatedinDAsystemsduetotherelativelyhighdensityandmultiplelayeringofcrops,whichcandecreaseairflow.Reducedairflowisamajorcontributortofungaldiseasepressure.Inaddition,thespringseasonsofboth2015and2016experiencedabnormallyhighprecipitationatallstudiedfarms,whichcanalsoexacerbatefungaldiseaseissues.Nevertheless,allobservedpathogenshavepreviouslybeenobservedintheNorthCentralRegion;nounexpectedpathogenswereobserved.However,fewpathogenswereobservedatmorethanonefarm,indicatingthatthereishighvariabilityacrossenvironmentsandmanagementregimes.

ArthropodDiversity&AbundanceEachofthefourcollaboratingfarmswasvisitedmonthlybytheSavannaInstitute’sfield

researchinternduringthe2015and2016growingseasons(typicallyMay-September)tocollectsamplesofbaselinepollinatorcommunitiesinDA.SampleswerecollectedfromtheDAsystemsoneachfarmaswellas2-3otherecosystemtypesnearby:hay,rowcrops(maizeorsoybean),andforest(VulcanFarmandFieldsRestoredonly).

Toassesstheinsectcommunitiespresentineachsystem,weusedapantrappingtransectmethod.Pantrappingusessmallplasticbowlspaintedblue,white,andyellowtomimicbee-pollinatedflowers.Bowlsarefilledwithslightlysoapywatertocollectinsectsthatenterthetraps.Whilepantrapsaretargetedatbees,theyalsocapturearangeofflower-visitinginsectsinothertaxa.Asapassivetechnique,pantrappingminimizescollectorbiasinbeesamplingandrequiresrelativelyminimallabor.Becausepantrappingisbasedonvisibilitybytargetorganisms,trapsmustbeelevatedtotheheightofsurrounding.Whenvegetationwastall,thiswasachievedbyusingtapetoattachbowlstosturdystalks(Figure7A).Pantrapswerelaidinstraighttransectsof15bowls,laid5mapart(Figures7Band7C).Oncesampleswerereturnedtothelab,theSavannaInstitute’sentomologistinternsorted,preserved,andidentifiedallcollectedarthropodstotheorderlevelusingadissectingmicroscope.

Over13,500arthropodswerecollectedacrossallsystemsfrom29site-monthsthroughouttheproject.Arthropodsfromthefollowing10orderswerecollectedandcatalogued:Anthophila,Aranae,Coleoptera,Collembola,Diptera,Hemiptera,Hymenoptera,Lepidoptera,Orthoptera,Thysoptera.Asameasureofoverallarthropoddiversity,themeannumberofarthropodorderspresentinpantrapsampleswascalculatedforeachland-usesystem(Figure8).TheDAandhaysystemshadsignificantlyhigherdiversityattheorderlevelthantherowcropsystems(ANOVA&Tukey’sHSD,p<0.01).Therewerenosignificantdifferencesbetweenanyotherland-usecombinations.

Beyonddiversity,arthropodabundancevarieddramaticallyacrossland-usesystems.HayandDAweresimilarinbothoverallabundanceandcommunitycompositionin2015and2016(Figure9).Similarly,forestandrowcropsweresimilarinbothoverallabundanceand

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communitycomposition,althoughbothsystemshadmuchlowerabundancethathayorDA.Thesimilaritybetweenforestandrowcropcommunitieswasunexpected,althoughmightbeexplainedbytherelativelysmallforestfragmentsthatwereavailableforstudywithinalandscapecontextdominatedbymaizeandsoybean.In2015,DipteraandHymenopterawerethetwomostcommonarthropodordersobserved,whereasCollembolaandThysanopteraweremostabundantin2016.

ManagementapproachwithinDAsystemswasalsoobservedtoaffecttheabundanceofsomearthropodorders.Onaverage,low-laborfarmshostedovertwiceasmanybees(Anthophila)comparedtohigh-laborfarms(ANOVA,p<0.05).Onepossibledriverforthisisthatlowlaborfarmstypicallyharboredamuchhigherabundanceandwiderdiversityofweeds,whichcancontributesubstantialnumbersofavailableflowerstothesystem.Atthesametime,thelow-laborfarmshostedlessthanhalfasmanyflies(Diptera)comparedtohigh-laborfarms(ANOVA,p<0.01).ThesecontrastingresultssuggestthatDAmanagementapproachescandifferentiallyimpacttheabundanceofarthropodswithinvariousphylogeneticorders.Theonlyarthropodssignificantlyaffectedbytheleveloffarminputswerethrips(Thysanoptera),whichwerealmostthreetimesmoreabundantinthelow-inputfarms(i.e.lesstonoherbicide)comparedtothehigh-inputfarms(ANOVA,p<0.05).Thripsaregenerallyherbivores,puncturingplantleavesandsuckingoutthecontents.Asforthebees,alikelyreasonforthehigherthripabundanceinlow-inputfarmsisthehigherweedbiomass.

Overall,itisquiteimpressivethatbotharthropoddiversityandabundancewerehigherintheyoung,establishingDAsystemsthanbothforestandrowcrops.Whilehigherinsectdiversityiswill-documentedinmatureagroforestrysystems,apositiveshiftindiversitywithinjustthefirst1-2yearsafterestablishmentisaveryimpressivesignoftheircapacitytofosterbiodiversity.Inaddition,itisinterestingtoseethatthecommunitycompositionoftheDAsystemsismostsimilartothecommunitypresentinthehaysystems.ThismakessensesincetheherbaceousgroundcoveristhedominantcomponentofplantbiomassintheearlyyearsofDAsystems,andisoftenofsimilarspeciescompositiontotheadjacenthaycommunities.ResultsalsosuggestthatvariationsinmanagementapproachwithinDAsystemsaffectinsects,particularlybeesandflies.Futureresearchshouldevaluatetherelationshipsbetweenlaborandinputclass,insectabundance,andyieldoutcomesasmoredataisavailable.

OutreachTimelapsePhotography

Weatherprooftimelapsecameraswereplacedateachcooperatingfarmandtookphotosdailythroughouttheproject.ThesephotoswerethenpiecedtogethertogreatimpactfulvisualsofhowDAsystemsdevelopovertime.Thetimelapsecameraswillcontinuetocapturethisvaluableeducationalassetevenafterthecompletionofthisproject.AssembledtimelapsevideostodateareavailableonanewpageontheSavannaInstitutewebsite:http://www.savannainstitute.org/timelapse-videos.html.ResultsDissemination

Fielddayswereheldannuallyateachparticipatingfarm,withtoursledbythefarmersandconversationsledbySavannaInstitutestaff(Figure10).Ateachfieldday,aswellasatthreeSavannaInstitutefielddaysonotherfarms,weintroducedtheDAsystemsandprovided

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anoverviewofthisSARE-supportedstudy.Attendeeswereprovidedwithlightrefreshmentsandtimetodeveloprelationshipsamongthemselves.FielddayannouncementsandphotosfollowingtheeventsweresharedonsocialmediaandviatheSavannaInstitutenewsletter.Attheon-farmfielddays,~100attendeesobservedtheDAsystemsincludedinthisstudyandlearnedabouttheproject.Wehavewitnessedmanynewcollaborationsformasaresultofintroductionsmadeaton-farmfielddays.Furthermore,attheSavannaInstitute’sannualFarmerGatheringinFebruary2017,SavannaInstitutestaffpresentedto~60attendeesabouttheresultsofthisstudy.

Abulletinsummarizingtheresultsofthisprojectwasalsocreatedtoprovideafarmer-friendlyoverview.ThisbulletinhasbeendistributedviatheSavannaInstitutenewsletter,tonetworkcollaboratorsacrosstheMidwest,andisavailableontheSavannaInstitutewebsite.Inaddition,theresultsbulletinhasbeenprintedandwillbedistributedatthe2018annualFarmerGatheringaswellasatallSavannaInstitutefielddaysin2018.

Outcomes&ImpactThisprojectservesasafirststepinexploringtheinput/managementtradeoffsinDA

systemsandwillsupportinformeddecision-makingforcurrentfarmersandpotentialadopters.Moreover,theknowledgegainedofcriticalpests,arthropodcommunities,andmonitoringmethodswillsupportmanagementdecisionsandappropriatefuturestudiesinDAsystems.Furthermore,thedocumentedbenefitsofDAonarthropodcommunitieswillservetoeducatethepublicforpolicyandmarketingefforts.

TheresultsofthisprojecthavealreadyspurredconversationamongthecooperatingfarmersandmanyotherCaseStudyfarmersaroundadjustingtheirinput/managementstrategies.TheincreasedcapacityoftheSavannaInstituteCaseStudyProgramstimulatedbythisprojecthasalsomotivatedincreasedfarmerparticipationandexpandedtheprogramintoavibrantcommunityofpractice.

Inthelong-term,wehopethatourresearchresultsandmulti-facetededucationalapproacheswillservetoimprovetheviabilityofDA-basedfarmsandhelpdriveadoptionacrosstheNorthCentralRegion.Theresearchprotocols,findings,andrelationshipsdevelopedinthisprojectarealreadyallowingtheSavannainstitutetoexpanditshorizonsandestablishcollaborationswithresearchersatseverallandgrantuniversities.

AcknowledgementsTheSavannaInstitutethanksourtwofieldinterns,DaneHunterandAlexHiatt,fortheir

hardworkinvisitingthefarmsandcollectingdata.Inaddition,wethankourentomologistintern,AlessaLaserna,forherdiligentworkclassifyinginsectsinthelab.WearegratefulforadviceandsupportfromAdamKranzandDr.JamesMilleronexperimentaldesignandgenerouslysharinglabspaceandequipment.Finally,wethankourhard-workingCaseStudyfarmerswhoparticipatedinthisprojectandcontinuetosupportthevalueofresearchandeducationinagroforestryintheMidwest:CatheCapel,KatePotter,MarciaPowell,andScottWilliams.

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Tables Table 1. Frequency of severe deer antler rubbing over the 2016-2017 winter season on 2-year-old hybrid poplars under different management practices at Vulcan Farm.

3' tree tube No tree tube 3' tree tube No tree tube0% 71% 0% 44%

Fall prune all branches No pruning

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Table 2. Plant pathogens observed on four farms with young, establishing diverse agroforestry systems.

Plant-Scientific Plant-Common Pathogen-Scientific Pathogen-CommonAmelanchier sp. Serviceberry Colletotrichum AnthracnoseleafspotAroniamelanocarpa Chokeberry Septoria LeafspotCastenaeamollisima Chestnut Pestalotia LeafspotCorylus sp. Hazelnut Cylindrosporium LeafspotCorylus sp. Hazelnut Pestalotia LeafspotPopulus sp. Hybridpoplar Marssonina Blackleafspot;MarssoninaleafblightPopulus sp. Hybridpoplar Septoria LeafspotRibesnigrum Blackcurrant Alternaria LeafspotRibesnigrum BlackCurrant Colletotrichum AnthracnoseLeafspotRibesnigrum Blackcurrant Drepanopeziza(Pseudopeziza) RibesanthracnoseRibesrubrum Currant Cercospora LeafspotRibesrubrum Redcurrant Drepanopeziza(Gloeosporium)ribus RibesanthracnoseRibesrubrum Redcurrant Mycosphaerellagrossulariae CurrantleafspotSalixsp. Shrubwillow Venturia Willowleafblight;scapSambucuscanadensis Elderberry Alternaria LeafspotViburnumtrilobum Americancranberrybush Plasmoparaviburni ViburnumdownymildewVitislabrusca Grape Plasmoparaviticola Grapedownymildew

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Figures

Figure 1. Representative photos from each for the four farms studied in this project: (A) Vulcan Farm, (B) Fields Restored, (C) Lockie Farm, and (D) Sun Dappled Farm.

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Figure 2. Representative yields from four farms with young, establishing diverse agroforestry systems, including (A) cut flowers, (B) blackberries, (C) raspberries, (D) culinary herbs, and (E) cut floral stems.

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Figure 3. Relative growth in basal stem area for selected species across the four collaborating farms. Farms are classified by their management regimes.

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Figure 4. Basal stem area of ten Chinese chestnut varieties at the end of the project.

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Figure 5. Hybrid poplar tree (A) without protection from deer rub was completely girdled during the winter, whereas trees (B) with protection via 3-foot plastic tree tube.

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Figure 6. Examples of pathogen damage on four farms with young, establishing diverse agroforestry systems.

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Figure 7. To sample pollinators in the various land-use systems, (A) bowl traps were set out in the morning and recollected at the end of the day. Example bowl traps in (B) forest and (C) soybean are also shown.

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Figure 8. The mean number of arthropod orders per site-month in each of the four land-use systems studied. All months were average together for each site-year, and site-years taken as the unit of replication. Systems with the same letter are not significantly different.

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Figure 9. Mean abundance of arthropods per site-month in each of the four land-use systems studied. All months at all four sites were average together for each year.

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Figure 10. Representative photos from field days at the collaborating farms.