Indigenous practices and socio-economics of areca catechu l. and piper betel l. based innovative agroforestry in northern rural bangladesh

An agroforestry system based on Areca catechu L. and Piper betel L. has been gradually developed by farmers of northern rural Bangladesh since the late 1980s. This paper explores the indigenous practices and the socio-economics of this agroforestry system, seen as a promising land use strategy in the region. Data were collected by interviewing household members and visiting their agroforestry plots as well as by focus group discussions in five villages of Panchagarh district. Results indicate that farmers allocated a portion of their farmland along with homesteads for Areca and betel-based agroforestry because they felt it was both sustainable and profitable. Sustainability was ensured by the presence of different Areca and betel leaf age gradations in the plantations and by buoyant product markets. Variation was observed among farmers regarding land allocation, tree density, income, and marketing of products. Though poor farmers had less land at their disposal, they allocated the same proportion of their land to agroforestry as did the largest land holders. Poor farmers' agroforestry plots had the highest Areca tree density and also derived the highest income per hectare. Net income per farmer was directly proportional to the amount of land allotted to agroforestry.