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Land and nature stewardship
It is hard to envisage any system of sustainable land management that does not involve extensive use of trees.
At a landscape scale, trees provide vital habitats for wildlife, timber for construction and fuel, aid soil and water management, and have high aesthetic and recreational value.
"Trees are central to ecosystems, not just because they are large, but rather because they affect the larger climate. Water flows differently due to trees. The wind is blocked, deflected, slowed or funneled depending on how trees are arranged. Light can be blocked, or its heat can be concentrated into specific areas. Soil is built, enriched and sheltered by trees. Animals, insects and other life forms all rely on trees to thrive. They are the go-between for the energy entering, absorbed, and dispersed within natural systems." Geoff Lawton
Here, trees are included in cultivation systems. Silvopastoral systems integrate trees and livestock. Silvoarable systems are where crops are grown with trees.
Analogue forestry is similar to forest gardening but is done on a grander scale, with more concern for local ecology and less for food production, and is generally employed in tropical or sub-tropical areas areas.
“Continuous cover forestry involves the maintenance of a forest canopy during the regeneration phase with a consequent presumption against clearfelling in favour of alternative silvicultural systems.
Declining health and lack of stability in 'age-class' forests have led to an increasing interest in the dynamics and structures of more 'nature orientated' forests.