Monetary Benefits in a Southern Silvopastoral System

Abstract

Abstract In many regions of the United States, agroforestry has become an important land use alternative. In the South, silvopasture, which combines spatial and temporal growth of timber and livestock, is the most common form of agroforestry. An economic analysis was undertaken to demonstrate the monetary and wildlife benefits that can be accrued from a silvopastoral system in the southern United States. Wildlife-related activities as well as annual and periodic cash flows from timber and livestock sales were included in the analysis. Land expectation value (LEV), equivalent annual income (EAI), and rate of return (ROR) were compared for a silvopastoral system and four traditional southern monocultural systems. The profitability of silvopastoral systems is comparable to other land use systems. Silvopasture further provides opportunities for incorporating wildlife-related activities through hunting leases and possesses both quality and quantity of wildlife habitat not available in other systems. On average, the inclusion of hunting leases increases LEVs from 3.1 to 30.6% per acre over a range of lease and interest rates. Finally, results of this and other studies suggest that silvopasture is an environmentally and economically feasible alternative to traditional land uses. South.J. Appl. For. 26(3):159–164.