The origin of agroforestry practices—growing trees and shrubs with food and fruit crops and grasses is traditional and very old—but the science of agroforestry is new. Years of experience and experiments have shown that agroforestry as a land-use system is capable of yielding both food and wood and at the same time helps in conserving and rehabilitating the ecosystems. It has the capability to increase the overall productivity of land, maintain the nutrient balance in the soil, and above all, protect the nature.

In the recent years, agroforestry has been recommended as a core subject in the curriculum of B. Sc. (Forestry) and B. Sc. (Agriculture) courses of agricultural universities. This book has been divided into ten chapters covering very comprehensive information on all aspects of agroforestry including history, concepts, systems classification, tree-crop interactions, planning and management, diagnosis and design, policy and projects, and propagation and management practices of multipurpose trees.

Alok Kumar Patra has about 25 years of experience in research and teaching at UG and PG level on agroforestry and agrometeorology. Presently he works as Professor (Agronomy) in the All India Coordinated Research Project on Integrated Farming Systems, Odisha University of Agriculture & Technology, Bhubaneswar, Odisha, India.

1. Agroforestry - A Sustainable Land Use System  2. Social Forestry  3. Status of Indian Forests  4. Agroforestry System, Subsystem and Practice  5. Tree Crop Interaction in Agroforestry  6. Selection of Tree Crop Species for Agroforestry  7. Agroforestry Planning and Management  8. Agroforestry Diagnosis and Design  9. Agroforestry Policy and Projects  10. Management Practices of Multipurpose Trees