Abstract
Farmer-managed natural regeneration (FMNR) is being promoted for restoration beyond its original range in the Sahel. FMNR involves farmers selecting and managing natural regeneration on their fields, while keeping them under the primary function of agricultural production. However, little is known about what regenerates in different contexts, even though this underlies potential restoration impact. Here we assess how human impact, land degradation and dispersal limitation affect structural and functional properties of regeneration across 316 plots in agroforestry parklands of Ghana and Burkina Faso. We found that intensity of land use (grazing and agricultural practices) and dispersal limitation inhibited regeneration, while land degradation did not. Functional composition of regenerating communities shifted towards shorter statured, small-seeded and conservative strategies with intensity of land use. We conclude that the presence of trees of desired species in the vicinity is a precondition for successfully implementing FMNR for restoration, and that regeneration needs to be protected from grazing. Assessment of regeneration potential is imperative for scaling out FMNR and where natural regeneration will be insufficient to achieve restoration targets, FMNR needs to be complemented with tree planting.
Highlights
Farmer-managed natural regeneration (FMNR) is being promoted for restoration beyond its original range in the Sahel
We aimed to identify the effects of dispersal limitation, human impact and land degradation on regeneration density, diversity and functional traits
In terms of human impact 49% of the plots had agricultural activities, in 64% grazing took place and 54% showed signs of fire use, though their intensities differ across land uses (Supplementary Fig. 2) and across the two sites (Supplementary Fig. 3). 82% of the plot were eroded and over 99% had critically low levels of topsoil nitrogen (< 0.2%)
Summary
Farmer-managed natural regeneration (FMNR) is being promoted for restoration beyond its original range in the Sahel. In this study we evaluate three main environmental filters that may hamper or promote regeneration in the context of FMNR leading to a mechanistic understanding of regeneration These are: the abundance and proximity of seed sources to reveal possible effects of dispersal limitation, land degradation as a proxy for environmental stress, and human impact on the land to indicate frequent disturbances. To date it is largely unknown how dispersal limitation, land degradation and anthropogenic drivers affect regeneration dynamics in the context of natural regeneration for restoration This is crucial for identifying the potential of FMNR as a scalable restoration technique, where and for whom it is likely to be a useful option[16], and thereby its usefulness in the ecosystem restoration decade. We aimed to identify the effects of dispersal limitation, human impact and land degradation on regeneration density, diversity and functional traits
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