Much of the deforestation of Guatemala’s rainforests is resultant of slash-and-burn agriculture. Ironically, rainforest topsoil is often thin and low in nutrients; so small scale farmers must clear and burn new plots of land every few years to find fresh soil for their crops. After setting the forest on fire, releasing valuable nutrients into the soil, farmers plant their corn and bean crops — first year crop is good, second year crop yields less, and often the third year crop is so small that farmers must burn new land to start the process again. In Guatemala, thousands of poor families live in this desperate cycle in search of fresh lands.
In partnership with Rainforest Alliance and Regenerative Agriculture Alliance, Journeys in Conservation is helping to create the first network of regenerative chicken farms in Guatemala. This novel system uses traditional wisdom and ecological principles of the chickens natural environment to raise birds under fruit, fodder, and hardwood forest with more diversified production and healthier birds than in industrial systems. in 2021, Finca Experimental Cheel became the first agroforestry chicken farm in our region, with more to come, all joining a cooperative to sell their eggs and meat and to produce chicken feed collectively.
Most Guatemalan farmers have limited access to education and are unaware of alternative systems. Agroforestry is a powerful potential alternative to the destruction of slash-and-burn. By definition, agroforestry is a land management system that optimizes the benefits from the biological interactions created when certain species of trees or shrubs are combined with crops and/or livestock. Through our alliance with Contour Lines Corps Agro-Reforestation, Journeys in Conservation promotes a technique called alley cropping on contour using the tree species Madre Cacao (Gliricidia sepium). It is called Madre Cacao because it is traditionally used as the shade tree on chocolate plantations.
Native to Central American dryforests, Madre Cacao produces a famously durable hardwood and edible flowers. It’s resilient and fast developing, growing from simple branch cuttings, and reaching heights of +12 ft within its first 2 years. Madre Cacao is highly effective in agroforestry because it not only grows in degraded soils but actually improves soil quality via its leguminous roots and when trimmed, its abundant nutrient-rich foliage decomposes as organic fertilizing “green manure”. This leaf litter and the tree’s shadowy canopy minimizes unwanted weed growth around crops, significantly reducing the amount of time farmers spend on the difficult task of de-weeding their plots. The leaves are also edible for chickens and cows! Lastly, Madre Cacao represents an excellent timber and firewood source. Because of its capacity to be completely cut at a height of 4-5 ft. and subsequently regrow a new trunk within 1 year, it provides enough firewood for farmers to no longer extract wood from nearby forests for their family’s cooking and heating needs. If they let it grow, the truck is great for construction. It is commonly used as a living fence, where its branches are planted in the ground along the fence line and they grow into living fence posts!
Journeys in Conservation also works with local farmers to implement a new system of ecologically balanced, resource efficient, free range cattle and dairy production through which the cows don’t simply eat grass — they eat highly nutritious bushes and tall grasses all grown among trees. This silvopastoral system enables farmers to raise 200-300% larger herds on the same amount of space, the cows are healthier, and the system fights climate change by sequestering huge amounts of greenhouse gases. This system is promoted by the world’s foremost sustainability programs such as Rainforest Alliance, Wildlife Conservation Society, and many others. Check out the video below by the BBC reporting on Colombian farmers utilizing this system to enhance their land and herds.
Journeys in Conservation also assists women’s groups, local farmers, and communities with procurement, labor, and capacity support for growing fruit trees, food crops, and cash crops. We teach and foster the importance of food security and economic independence via efficient land management.