Resources

The Backyard Agroforestry Recipe Guide

What is agroforestry in relation to the Trees for People project?

The term agroforestry is open to wide interpretation and encompasses a range of highly disparate land management practices, including alley cropping, riparian buffers, silvopasture, windbreaks, and forest farming. This last sub-category, forest farming, is where Grow Good Hawaii is focusing on at a small scale.

The Trees for People application of agroforestry is to use a holistic approach that redesigns tropical urban residential landscapes into agroecological systems that efficiently use the space to maximize biodiversity and stimulate biological interactions, resulting in aesthetically pleasing designs that need fewer inputs (fertilizer, pesticides) and produce more positive outputs such as nutritious food, cooling/shade, and habitat. 

Components of our Agroforestry Model: The Essential Steps

1. The Primary Tree

The top canopy of the garden. Select 1. Examples of primary trees include:

  • Avocado
  • Citrus
  • Calamansi
  • Canistel, egg fruit
  • Chico
  • Jackfruit
  • Koaia, acacia* (Native Hawaiian plant, does not produce food)
  • Kou* (Native Hawaiian plant, does not produce food)
  • Mango
  • Niu
  • Lonomea* (Native Hawaiian plant, does not produce food)
  • ʻUlu

2. The Secondary Tree

The secondary canopy underneath the primary tree. Select 1 to 3, depending on the space. Examples of secondary trees include:

  • A’ali’i (Does not produce food)
  • Papaya
  • Mai’a
  • Koaia, acacia (Native Hawaiian plant, does not produce food)
  • Moringa

3. The Shrub Hero

Shrubs are the mid-tier of the garden. Hero shrubs are shrubs that can produce food throughout the year. Select 1 to 3, depending on the space, and include at least 1 “hero shrub”. Examples of shrub heroes include:

  • Bele (Hero shrub)
  • Cassava
  • Chaya (Hero shrub)
  • Katuk (Hero shrub)
  • Surinam Cherry
  • Mamaki

4. The Soil Hero

Soil heroes are plants that provide essential nutrients and other benefits to the soil in a garden. Select 2-3, depending on the space. Include 1 plant that is a nitrogen fixer and at least one that you can “chop-and-drop”. Examples of soil heroes include:

  • Perennial peanut (Nitrogen fixer, does not produce food)
  • Lablab (Nitrogen fixer, chop-and-drop)
  • Nanea (Nitrogen fixer, Native Hawaiian plant, does not produce food)
  • Pigeon Pea (Nitrogen fixer, chop-and-drop)
  • Sun Hemp (Chop-and-drop, does not produce food)

5. Short-Term Crops

Short-term crops are plants that are seasonal and can be grown from seed or transplanted. Select up to 3 you’ll grow from seed, and 2 you will transplant. Examples of short-term crops include:

  • Bok Choy/mustard
  • Bean, lima (Grow from seed)
  • Daikon radish (Grow from seed)
  • Edamame (Grow from seed)
  • Eggplant
  • Kalo/taro
  • Pepper, Bell
  • Pepper, Chili
  • Tomato

6. Groundcovers and Fillers

One main goal in an agroforestry garden is to limit the amount of bare ground as it helps reduce weeding, cools down the soil, and saves water. Groundcovers are plants that cover the soil. They grow quickly, and can be easily propagated from cuttings, and they can also produce food! Select more than 1 species. Examples of groundcovers include:

  • ‘Uala
  • Pāʻū O Hiʻiaka (Native Hawaiian plant, does not produce food)
  • Nanea ((Native Hawaiian plant, does not produce food)
  • Lablab
  • Chives
  • Oahu sedge (Native Hawaiian plant, does not produce food)
  • Ahuawa (Native Hawaiian plant, does not produce food)
  • ‘Olena
  • Pili Grass (Native Hawaiian plant, does not produce food)
  • Basil, Thai

The Optional Steps

7. Go Vertical

Vines can help you grow more in small spaces by growing in a vertical space. You can use a trellis, a wall, or even trees to grow vines. Select 1. Examples of vines include:

  • Bittermelon
  • Cucumber
  • Bean, yard long (Grow from seed)
  • ‘Ipu
  • Dragon Fruit
  • Lilikoi

8. Accent Plants

Along with providing food, agroforestry gardens can be aesthetically pleasing as well. Accent plants can have flowers or bright colors that stand out in the garden. Select 1 species that you cluster 2 to 3 areas of the garden. Examples of accent plants include:

  • ʻIlima papa (Native Hawaiian plant, does not produce food)
  • Pohinahina (Native Hawaiian plant, does not produce food)
  • ‘Ukiʻuki (Native Hawaiian plant, does not produce food)

9. Select another interest and theme beyond food

Your success and sense of reward for the garden will increase if this space reflects your values and interests. Try to find one other theme and plant 1-3 plants that fit that theme. Example of themes include:

  • Cultural / Canoe Plant
  • Foodie
  • Community – plants that are easy to give away
  • Environment-plant conservation
  • Environment-wildlife
  • Beauty – landscape focus
  • Lei making
  • Medicinal
Back To Top