Development prospects of the silvopastoral system in the Republic of Serbia

According to the United Nations, agroforestry is the most important agricultural innovation in Europe in the 21st century. It is a land-use system that combines trees and shrubs with agricultural plants or pastures and livestock. Agroforestry is an integrated, planned, and targeted cultivation of trees and shrubs on an agricultural land. It has been practiced on over one billion hectares worldwide, and the area is constantly increasing. The silvopastoral system is the most common form of agroforestry and involves a planned use of woody plants, forage plants, and animals in the same place. The Republic of Serbia has a high potential for the development of this system as it has a large pasture area (2023 – 238163 ha) which accounts for 7% of the total agricultural land. The advantages of such a complex, multifunctional system are that it contributes to the preservation of biodiversity, water and soil quality, reduces land degradation and fire risk, adapts to climate change (by increasing drought resistance), preserves the welfare and increases the productivity of domestic animals, diversifies income, improves the ecological aspects and aesthetics of agricultural and forest landscapes, and contributes to the preservation of traditional cultural heritage. Its disadvantages are the high initial investment, the possibility of damage to trees and shrubs by animals, and the difficulty of applying mechanization. However, over 30 years, pasture productivity increased by 17% and forest by 53%. Trees in pastures can be planted widely spaced, in rows or groups, with planting density depending on the tree species, production objectives, and projected management intensity. The planting density should not exceed 150 trees per hectare, as a further increase reduces the productivity of the pasture. Trees planted on the pasture serve as shelter for animals by providing shade, thereby reducing the impact of heat stress on the animals, increasing animal productivity and improving animal welfare. Tall trees with a smaller crown can be planted for the production of timber, cork and firewood (beech, oak, birch, poplar, ash, maple, spruce, acacia and others) and fruit species for the production of fruits (apple, pear, olive, walnut, hazelnut, blackberry, raspberry, sweet chestnut and others). In Serbia, it is necessary to educate farmers about the potential of the silvopastoral system, give them guidelines for its establishment and maintenance, and conduct certain research. It is necessary to help livestock farmers transition to switch to such systems by providing funds through investment projects, favorable loans and constant technical support from experts. Also, livestock farmers should be informed with economic and ecological sustainability of such systems, supported by an adequate policy with adequate and financially strong measures of rural development which could solve the problem of abandonment and ageing of villages.