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Liu CA, Liang MY, Zhang JL, Hua S, Duan ZB. Improved soil moisture, nutrients, and economic benefits using plastic mulchs in balsa-based agroforestry systems. ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCE AND POLLUTION RESEARCH INTERNATIONAL 2024; 31:15733-15745. [PMID: 38305975 DOI: 10.1007/s11356-024-32264-7] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/27/2023] [Accepted: 01/26/2024] [Indexed: 02/03/2024]
Abstract
The manufacture of wind turbine blades generally uses balsa wood as the base materials, and it is crucial to explore new regions for cultivating balsa trees to achieve carbon neutrality in the future. Xishuangbanna may be China's only area with a tropical climate suitable for the large-scale planting of balsa trees. The present study investigated the key soil elements influencing the growth of balsa plantations and the effects of different cultivation practices on soil environments and economic benefits in Xishuangbanna, China. We found that the height of balsa stems after growing 4 years reached 5.8 m; the increment of diameter at breast height (DBH) reached 27.7 cm and volume of balsa stems reached 196.0 m3 ha-1 in Xishuangbanna of China. It is of the utmost importance to improve the contents of soil exchangeable magnesium (Mg) and available phosphorus (P) for the growth of balsa trees, and exchangeable aluminium (Al) inhibited the growth of balsa trees. The practice of plastic film mulching not only improved soil moisture in the 40‒100-cm soil layer in the dry season and in the 0-60-cm soil layer in the rainy season but also enhanced soil nitrate nitrogen when compared with no plastic-mulching practice in balsa plantations. The comprehensive economic benefits of balsa/coriander/ginger/taro plantations were significantly improved by implementing plastic film mulching, as compared to balsa plantations. We conclude that balsa tree can be cultivated in Xishuangbanna, China, and its successful cultivation provides opportunities for China's wind power development.
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Affiliation(s)
- Chang-An Liu
- CAS Key Laboratory of Tropical Plant Resources and Sustainable Use, Xishuangbanna Tropical Botanical Garden, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Menglun, Mengla, 666303, Yunnan, China.
| | - Ming-Yue Liang
- University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, 100049, China
| | - Jia-Lin Zhang
- University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, 100049, China
| | - Shuai Hua
- CAS Key Laboratory of Tropical Plant Resources and Sustainable Use, Xishuangbanna Tropical Botanical Garden, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Menglun, Mengla, 666303, Yunnan, China
| | - Zhu-Biao Duan
- CAS Key Laboratory of Tropical Plant Resources and Sustainable Use, Xishuangbanna Tropical Botanical Garden, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Menglun, Mengla, 666303, Yunnan, China
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Li S, Gong S, Hou Y, Li X, Wang C. The impacts of agroforestry on soil multi-functionality depending on practices and duration. THE SCIENCE OF THE TOTAL ENVIRONMENT 2022; 847:157438. [PMID: 35882333 DOI: 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2022.157438] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/03/2022] [Revised: 07/12/2022] [Accepted: 07/13/2022] [Indexed: 06/15/2023]
Abstract
Agroforestry systems provide a wide range of soil multiple functions (that is, soil multi-functionality) to human society, including the regulation of nutrients and water in soils and the sequestration of atmospheric carbon dioxide, whereas how these effects varied with agroforestry practices and environmental conditions remain unclear. Here, by comparing the soil multi-functionality in agroforestry systems to forests through the field experiment and global scale meta-analysis, we tested, 1) how agroforestry affected soil multi-functionality in a single field study and at the global scale, 2) whether the effects of agroforestry on soil multi-functionality changed in different agroforestry practices, 3) whether the effects of agroforestry on soil multi-functionality varied with environmental conditions. Our study showed that most of the soil functions in agroforestry systems is higher than in forests at the global scale, but show no significant differences between agroforestry and planted forests in our field study. We also found that the effects of agroforestry on soil multi-functionality were varied with agroforestry practices, showing a greater positive in forest-herbage systems than in other practices. In addition, the positive effects of agroforestry on soil organic carbon and total phosphorus declined with the extension of experimental duration. Furthermore, our analysis found that climate conditions had a minor effect on the effects of agroforestry on soil functions. Our analysis revealing that the effects of agroforestry on soil functions depend on agroforestry practices, highlighting that the effects of agroforestry may be diminished with age, and suggesting that the evaluation of ecological impacts of agroforestry should be based on long-term experiments across multiple practices.
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Affiliation(s)
- Shifeng Li
- College of Water Resources and Civil Engineering, China Agricultural University, Qinghuadong Street 17th, Haidian district, Beijing, China
| | - Shanshan Gong
- Institute of Forest Ecology, Environment and Protection, Chinese Academy of Forestry, Haidian district, Beijing, China.
| | - Yanhui Hou
- Institute of Grassland, Flowers and Ecology, Beijing Academy of Agriculture and Forestry Sciences (BAAFS), Haidian District, Beijing 100097, China
| | - Xiaona Li
- Institute of Grassland, Flowers and Ecology, Beijing Academy of Agriculture and Forestry Sciences (BAAFS), Haidian District, Beijing 100097, China
| | - Chao Wang
- Institute of Grassland, Flowers and Ecology, Beijing Academy of Agriculture and Forestry Sciences (BAAFS), Haidian District, Beijing 100097, China.
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Fine Root Production and Soil Available Nutrients in Rubber Monoculture versus Rubber–Flemingia macrophylla Agroforestry. FORESTS 2022. [DOI: 10.3390/f13060830] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 02/04/2023]
Abstract
In the present study, we examined fine root production and soil available nutrients (N, P and K) across different soil depths in rubber monoculture and rubber–Flemingia macrophylla agroforestry of different stand ages. We used the ingrowth cores method and sampled 360 soil cores over four growth intervals, representing one year of growth for the present study. The results showed that root production and macronutrient concentrations generally decreased with increasing soil depth. Total fine root production was comparatively high in the youngest stand age (12 years) rubber monoculture; a similar trend was observed for the soil available P and K, but available N was greater in older than younger stand ages. Root growth and soil available P and K were all lower in the agroforestry system than the monoculture. Significant differences in fine root production with stand ages, management system and seasons suggest that fine root responses to the soil available nutrients are vital to understanding the precise response of above- and belowground biomass to environmental changes.
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Laroche PCSJ, Schulp CJE, Kastner T, Verburg PH. Assessing the contribution of mobility in the European Union to rubber expansion. AMBIO 2022; 51:770-783. [PMID: 34120297 PMCID: PMC8197600 DOI: 10.1007/s13280-021-01579-x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/02/2020] [Revised: 03/16/2021] [Accepted: 05/16/2021] [Indexed: 06/12/2023]
Abstract
Nearly three-quarters of global natural rubber production is used to produce tyres, supporting mobility around the globe. The projected increase in mobility could contribute to further expansion of rubber plantations and impact tropical ecosystems. We quantified the use of natural rubber in tyres in the European Union (EU), the corresponding land footprint, and explored drivers of tyre use using country-specific transport statistics and trade registers of rubber goods. Five percent of the world's natural rubber is consumed in tyres used in the EU, using up to a quarter of the area under rubber plantations in some producing countries. Car use is responsible for 58% of this consumption, due to car-dependent lifestyles that are associated with economic prosperity and spatial planning paradigms. While the EU's transport policy focuses on reducing dependence on fossil-fuels, cross-cutting policies are needed to address car-dependency and reduce the EU's land footprint in tropical landscapes without compromising progress towards decarbonisation.
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Affiliation(s)
- Perrine C. S. J. Laroche
- Institute for Environmental Studies, Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam, De Boelelaan 1087, 1081 HV Amsterdam, The Netherlands
| | - Catharina J. E. Schulp
- Institute for Environmental Studies, Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam, De Boelelaan 1087, 1081 HV Amsterdam, The Netherlands
| | - Thomas Kastner
- Senckenberg Biodiversity and Climate Research Centre (SBiK-F), Senckenberganlage 25, 60325 Frankfurt-am-Main, Germany
| | - Peter H. Verburg
- Institute for Environmental Studies, Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam, De Boelelaan 1087, 1081 HV Amsterdam, The Netherlands
- Swiss Federal Research Institute for Forest, Snow and Landscape Research WSL, Birmensdorf, Switzerland
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Sun R, Wu Z, Lan G, Yang C, Fraedrich K. Effects of rubber plantations on soil physicochemical properties on Hainan Island, China. JOURNAL OF ENVIRONMENTAL QUALITY 2021; 50:1351-1363. [PMID: 34390263 DOI: 10.1002/jeq2.20282] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/24/2021] [Accepted: 08/11/2021] [Indexed: 06/13/2023]
Abstract
Recent and rapid expansion of rubber [Hevea brasiliensis (Willd. ex A. Juss.) Müll. Arg.] plantations requires understanding their effects on soil physicochemical properties and soil quality. An ideal testbed for analyzing such land-use change and its impacts is Hainan Island, the largest tropical island in China, which in recent decades has seen a dramatic expansion in the rubber industry. Based on 14 soil physicochemical properties at two soil depths (0-20 and 20-40 cm), a comprehensive assessment index was established using principal component analysis to assess soil qualities under rubber plantations (RPs; monoculture and intercropping) and five additional land-use types (areca palm [Areca L.], eucalyptus [Eucalyptus loxophleba Benth.] and banana [Musa L.] plantations, secondary forest, and tropical rainforest [TR]). The following results were obtained: (a) total porosity, ammoniacal N, total P, available P, and soil organic matter were vital soil physicochemical properties contributing to the comprehensive assessment index; (b) the comprehensive assessment indices of RPs were significantly lower than those of TR and areca palm plantation; (c) intercropping improves most soil physicochemical properties in RPs comparing monoculture and intercropped RPs; and (d) redundancy analysis demonstrated that land-use type interacted with climatic, geographical, and edaphic factors and collectively explained about half of the variation in the soil physicochemical properties across the study area. Deteriorating soil quality by converting TR to RPs and other land-use types provides another reason to protect TRs, especially on area-limited islands like Hainan.
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Affiliation(s)
- Rui Sun
- Rubber Research Institute, Chinese Academy of Tropical Agricultural Sciences, Haikou, 571101, China
- Danzhou Investigation & Experiment Station of Tropical Crops, Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs, Danzhou, 571737, China
| | - Zhixiang Wu
- Rubber Research Institute, Chinese Academy of Tropical Agricultural Sciences, Haikou, 571101, China
- Danzhou Investigation & Experiment Station of Tropical Crops, Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs, Danzhou, 571737, China
| | - Guoyu Lan
- Rubber Research Institute, Chinese Academy of Tropical Agricultural Sciences, Haikou, 571101, China
- Danzhou Investigation & Experiment Station of Tropical Crops, Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs, Danzhou, 571737, China
| | - Chuan Yang
- Rubber Research Institute, Chinese Academy of Tropical Agricultural Sciences, Haikou, 571101, China
- Danzhou Investigation & Experiment Station of Tropical Crops, Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs, Danzhou, 571737, China
| | - Klaus Fraedrich
- Max Planck Institute for Meteorology, Hamburg, 20146, Germany
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Liu CA, Liang MY, Tang JW, Jin YQ, Guo ZB, Siddique KHM. Challenges of the establishment of rubber-based agroforestry systems: Decreases in the diversity and abundance of ground arthropods. JOURNAL OF ENVIRONMENTAL MANAGEMENT 2021; 292:112747. [PMID: 33965684 DOI: 10.1016/j.jenvman.2021.112747] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/28/2020] [Revised: 04/20/2021] [Accepted: 04/30/2021] [Indexed: 06/12/2023]
Abstract
The global land area devoted to rubber plantations has now reached 13 million hectares, and the further expansion of these rubber plantations at the expense of tropical forests will have significant adverse effects on the ecological environment. Rubber-based agroforestry systems are considered a preferable approach for ameliorating the ecological environment. Many researchers have focused on the positive effects of rubber-based agroforestry systems on the ecological environment, while ignoring the risks involved in the establishment of rubber-based agroforestry systems. The present study investigated the effects of different-aged rubber-based agroforestry systems on the abundance and diversity of ground arthropods. It has been observed that the abundance and taxon richness of ground arthropods generally showed no difference when comparing young and mature rubber plantations. The rubber-based agroforestry systems significantly decreased the understory vegetation species, along with the abundance and taxon richness of ground arthropods compared to the same aged-rubber monoculture plantations. In addition, the change in the abundance and taxon richness of ground arthropods was greatly affected by the understory vegetation species and soil temperature. The abundance and taxon richness of ground arthropods decreased with the decrease in number of species of understory vegetation. The study results indicate that the establishment of rubber-based agroforestry systems have adversely affected the abundance and richness of ground arthropods to an extant greater than expected. Therefore, single, large rubber-based agroforestry systems are not recommended, and the intercropping of rubber and rubber-based agroforestry systems must be designed to promote the migration of ground arthropods between different systems.
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Affiliation(s)
- Chang-An Liu
- CAS Key Laboratory of Tropical Plant Resources and Sustainable Use, Xishuangbanna Tropical Botanical Garden, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Menglun, Mengla, Yunnan, 666303, China; Center of Economic Botany, Core Botanical Gardens, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Menglun, Mengla, Yunnan, 666303, China.
| | - Ming-Yue Liang
- CAS Key Laboratory of Tropical Plant Resources and Sustainable Use, Xishuangbanna Tropical Botanical Garden, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Menglun, Mengla, Yunnan, 666303, China; University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, 100049, China
| | - Jian-Wei Tang
- CAS Key Laboratory of Tropical Plant Resources and Sustainable Use, Xishuangbanna Tropical Botanical Garden, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Menglun, Mengla, Yunnan, 666303, China
| | - Yan-Qiang Jin
- CAS Key Laboratory of Tropical Plant Resources and Sustainable Use, Xishuangbanna Tropical Botanical Garden, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Menglun, Mengla, Yunnan, 666303, China
| | - Zhi-Bin Guo
- Soil and Fertilizer Research Institute of Anhui Academic of Agricultural Science, No. 40 Southern Nongke Road, Luyang District, Hefei, Anhui, 230031, China.
| | - Kadambot H M Siddique
- The UWA Institute of Agriculture, The University of Western Australia, Perth, WA, 6009, Australia
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Cao Y, Tie D, Zhao JL, Wang XB, Yi JJ, Chai YF, Wang KF, Wang ET, Yue M. Diversity and distribution of Sophora davidii rhizobia in habitats with different irradiances and soil traits in Loess Plateau area of China. Syst Appl Microbiol 2021; 44:126224. [PMID: 34218028 DOI: 10.1016/j.syapm.2021.126224] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/31/2020] [Revised: 06/01/2021] [Accepted: 06/02/2021] [Indexed: 11/16/2022]
Abstract
To investigate the diversity and distribution of rhizobia associated with Sophora davidii in habitats with different light and soil conditions at the Loess Plateau, we isolated rhizobia from root nodules of this plant grown at 14 sites at forest edge or understory in Shaanxi Province. Based on PCR-RFLP and phylogenies of 16S rRNA gene, housekeeping genes (atpD, dnaK, recA), and symbiosis genes (nodC and nifH), a total of 271 isolates were identified as 16 Mesorhizobium genospecies, belonging to four nodC lineages, and three nifH lineages. The dominance of M. waimense in the forest edge and of M. amorphae/Mesorhizobium sp. X in the understory habitat evidenced the illumination as a possible factor to affect the diversity and biogeographic patterns of rhizobia. However, the results of Canonical Correlation Analysis (CCA) among the environmental factors and distribution of rhizobial genospecies illustrated that soil pH and contents of total phosphorus, total potassium and total organic carbon were the main determinants for the community structure of S. davidii rhizobia, while the illumination conditions and available P presented similar and minor effects. In addition, high similarity of nodC and nifH genes between Mesorhizobium robiniae and some S. davidii rhizobia under the forest of Robinia pseudoacacia might be evidence for symbiotic gene lateral transfer. These findings firstly brought an insight into the diversity and distribution of rhizobia associated with S. davidii, and revealed illumination conditions a possible factor with impacts less than the soil traits to drive the symbiosis association between rhizobia and their host legumes.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ying Cao
- Key Laboratory of Resource Biology and Biotechnology in Western China, Taibai North Rd. 229, Xi'an City, Shaanxi Province, China; Department of Life Science, Northwest University, Taibai North Rd. 229, Xi'an City, Shaanxi Province, China.
| | - Dan Tie
- Key Laboratory of Resource Biology and Biotechnology in Western China, Taibai North Rd. 229, Xi'an City, Shaanxi Province, China; Department of Life Science, Northwest University, Taibai North Rd. 229, Xi'an City, Shaanxi Province, China
| | - Jia Le Zhao
- Key Laboratory of Resource Biology and Biotechnology in Western China, Taibai North Rd. 229, Xi'an City, Shaanxi Province, China; Department of Life Science, Northwest University, Taibai North Rd. 229, Xi'an City, Shaanxi Province, China
| | - Xu Bo Wang
- Key Laboratory of Resource Biology and Biotechnology in Western China, Taibai North Rd. 229, Xi'an City, Shaanxi Province, China; Department of Life Science, Northwest University, Taibai North Rd. 229, Xi'an City, Shaanxi Province, China
| | - Jun Jie Yi
- Key Laboratory of Resource Biology and Biotechnology in Western China, Taibai North Rd. 229, Xi'an City, Shaanxi Province, China; Department of Life Science, Northwest University, Taibai North Rd. 229, Xi'an City, Shaanxi Province, China
| | - Yong Fu Chai
- Key Laboratory of Resource Biology and Biotechnology in Western China, Taibai North Rd. 229, Xi'an City, Shaanxi Province, China; Department of Life Science, Northwest University, Taibai North Rd. 229, Xi'an City, Shaanxi Province, China
| | - Ke Feng Wang
- Key Laboratory of Resource Biology and Biotechnology in Western China, Taibai North Rd. 229, Xi'an City, Shaanxi Province, China; Department of Life Science, Northwest University, Taibai North Rd. 229, Xi'an City, Shaanxi Province, China
| | - En Tao Wang
- Departamento de Microbiología, Escuela Nacional de Ciencias Biológicas, Instituto Politécnico Nacional, 11340, Cd. México, Mexico
| | - Ming Yue
- Key Laboratory of Resource Biology and Biotechnology in Western China, Taibai North Rd. 229, Xi'an City, Shaanxi Province, China; Department of Life Science, Northwest University, Taibai North Rd. 229, Xi'an City, Shaanxi Province, China.
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Lee RH, Wang CL, Guénard B. The ecological implications of rubber‐based agroforestry: Insect conservation and invasion control. J Appl Ecol 2020. [DOI: 10.1111/1365-2664.13642] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/28/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Roger Ho Lee
- School of Biological Sciences The University of Hong Kong Hong Kong City Hong Kong
| | - Chase Liu‐Wei Wang
- School of Biological Sciences The University of Hong Kong Hong Kong City Hong Kong
| | - Benoit Guénard
- School of Biological Sciences The University of Hong Kong Hong Kong City Hong Kong
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de Sousa K, van Zonneveld M, Holmgren M, Kindt R, Ordoñez JC. The future of coffee and cocoa agroforestry in a warmer Mesoamerica. Sci Rep 2019; 9:8828. [PMID: 31222119 PMCID: PMC6586680 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-019-45491-7] [Citation(s) in RCA: 45] [Impact Index Per Article: 9.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/06/2018] [Accepted: 06/10/2019] [Indexed: 12/31/2022] Open
Abstract
Climate change threatens coffee production and the livelihoods of thousands of families in Mesoamerica that depend on it. Replacing coffee with cocoa and integrating trees in combined agroforestry systems to ameliorate abiotic stress are among the proposed alternatives to overcome this challenge. These two alternatives do not consider the vulnerability of cocoa and tree species commonly used in agroforestry plantations to future climate conditions. We assessed the suitability of these alternatives by identifying the potential changes in the distribution of coffee, cocoa and the 100 most common agroforestry trees found in Mesoamerica. Here we show that cocoa could potentially become an alternative in most of coffee vulnerable areas. Agroforestry with currently preferred tree species is highly vulnerable to future climate change. Transforming agroforestry systems by changing tree species composition may be the best approach to adapt most of the coffee and cocoa production areas. Our results stress the urgency for land use planning considering climate change effects and to assess new combinations of agroforestry species in coffee and cocoa plantations in Mesoamerica.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kauê de Sousa
- Department of Agricultural Sciences, Inland Norway University of Applied Sciences, 2322, Hamar, Norway.
- Bioversity International, 30501, Turrialba, Costa Rica.
| | - Maarten van Zonneveld
- Bioversity International, 30501, Turrialba, Costa Rica
- World Vegetable Center, 741, Shanhua, Taiwan
| | - Milena Holmgren
- Resource Ecology Group, Wageningen University, 6708, Wageningen, The Netherlands
| | | | - Jenny C Ordoñez
- Latin America Regional Office, World Agroforestry Centre, 1558, Lima, Peru
- Facultad de Ingenieria Agroindustrial, Universidad de las Américas, 170125, Quito, Ecuador
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