Agroforestry Services: Alley crop  Agroforestry Services: Contour hedgerow  Agroforestry Services: Crop shade  Agroforestry Services: Living fence  Agroforestry Services: Living trellis  Agroforestry Services: Nitrogen  Agroforestry Services: Windbreak  Fodder: Bank  Industrial Crop: Biomass  Management: Coppice  Management: Standard  Minor Global Crop

A plant of the moist tropics, where it is found at elevations up to 1,600 metres. It grows best in areas where annual daytime temperatures are within the range 15 - 30°c, but can tolerate 12 - 44°c[418 ]. Mature plants can be killed by temperatures of -2°c or lower, but young growth will be severely damaged at -1°c[418 ]. It prefers a mean annual rainfall in the range 1,200 - 2,300mm, but tolerates 600 - 3,500mm[418 ]. In its native range the climate is relatively uniformly sub-humid with a five-month dry period, though it can also grow successfully in more humid zones without a marked dry season (though it does not set seed then)[303 , 325 ]. Grows best in a sunny position[200 ]. Tolerates a wide range of soil types, both alkaline and acidic, including low-fertility soils[303 ]. It grows well on the calcareous soils of atolls[339 ]. Prefers freely draining soils but can tolerate some waterlogging[303 ]. Prefers a pH in the range 5.5 - 6.2, tolerating 4.5 - 8[418 ]. Plants establish well on steep slopes with up to 40% gradient[303 ]. As an aggressive coloniser, the plant has the potential to become a weed but is rarely so perhaps because it in most places is coppiced regularly and not permitted to set seed[325 ]. A fast growing tree, capable of increases in height of 3 metres or more per year, though early seedling growth is quite slow[418 ]. When grown as a fuel crop, the first harvest can be taken after 3 - 4 years, giving wood yields of 8 - 15 cubic metres per hectare. Subsequent coppicing is done every 2 - 3 years and yields may be 11 - 21 cubic metres[418 ]. Gliricidia is often exposed to annual fires in its native, seasonally dry habitat[303 ]. It tolerates such fires well and trees quickly resprout when the rains start, which explains the abundance of the tree in secondary vegetations and fallows[303 ]. There is a predictable relationship between the flowering of the plant and the onset of the rainy season in Venezuela, making it a promising indicator species[303 ]. In many parts of the naturalized range and where it is an exotic, flowering can occur any time of the year if there is no pronounced dry season[303 ]. Pod-ripening time ranges between 35 and 60 days. Pods can grow to full size within 3 weeks of fertilization. On maturity, pods dehisce explosively; tension builds up in the pod valves and the seeds are ejected to a distance of 25 metres. This phenomenon facilitates rapid establishment, especially in disturbed sites, and also means that in some areas the plant has become invasive[307 ]. Wind plays a part in the direction of seed dispersal. Secondary dispersal by rain is also possible[303 ]. Pollarding at 2 metres or above is recommended for optimal wood biomass production[303 ]. Coppicing is used where the primary objective is fuel wood production[303 ]. The plant has been shown to tolerate lopping and browsing[303 ]. This species has a symbiotic relationship with certain soil bacteria, these bacteria form nodules on the roots and fix atmospheric nitrogen. Some of this nitrogen is utilized by the growing plant but some can also be used by other plants growing nearby[200 ]. Bloom Color: Pink.

Carbon Farming

• Agroforestry Services: Alley crop  Integrates annual crops with rows of perennials.
• Agroforestry Services: Contour hedgerow  Alley cropping systems on the contour of slopes.
• Agroforestry Services: Crop shade  Plants providing crop shade especially trees.
• Agroforestry Services: Living fence  Simply managed rows of shrubs and trees.
• Agroforestry Services: Living trellis  Plants to physically support other crops.
• Agroforestry Services: Nitrogen  Plants that contribute to nitrogen fixation include the legume family – Fabaceae.
• Agroforestry Services: Windbreak  Linear plantings of trees and shrubs designed to enhance crop production, protect people and livestock and benefit soil and water conservation.
• Fodder: Bank  Fodder banks are plantings of high-quality fodder species. Their goal is to maintain healthy productive animals. They can be utilized all year, but are designed to bridge the forage scarcity of annual dry seasons. Fodder bank plants are usually trees or shrubs, and often legumes. The relatively deep roots of these woody perennials allow them to reach soil nutrients and moisture not available to grasses and herbaceous plants.
• Industrial Crop: Biomass  Three broad categories: bamboos, resprouting woody plants, and giant grasses. uses include: protein, materials (paper, building materials, fibers, biochar etc.), chemicals (biobased chemicals), energy - biofuels
• Management: Coppice  Cut to the ground repeatedly - resprouting vigorously. Non-destructive management systems maintaining the soil organic carbon.
• Management: Standard  Plants grow to their standard height. Harvest fruit, seeds, or other products. Non-Destructive management systems.
• Minor Global Crop  These crops are already grown or traded around the world, but on a smaller scale than the global perennial staple and industrial crops, The annual value of a minor global crop is under $1 billion US. Examples include shea, carob, Brazil nuts and fibers such as ramie and sisal.