Agroforestry Innovations Benefit Farmers and Habitats

WSDA Planting at Northwest Meadowscapes

Since our creation following the Dust Bowl, conservation districts have relied on partnerships with farmers to pioneer new ways of protecting our natural resources—and agroforestry is no exception. For the last several years, Snohomish Conservation District has led the region in agroforestry, working with farmers to integrate perennial trees and shrubs into their agricultural systems. Utilizing land in this way can help diversify income, sequester carbon, and improve productivity, water quality, and wildlife habitat. 

However, one of our biggest challenges has been the fact that most of the information available on agroforestry practices comes from well-established research and trial sites in the Midwest and Northeast. Data and resources specific to the Northwest are woefully lacking, particularly for the wet, marginal farmland that is so common throughout the Puget Sound. 

Rooted Northwest Planting Day

In 2022, Snohomish Conservation District—in partnership with several innovative farmers, conservation districts, and other agencies—made significant strides in changing that. 

“We know that agroforestry has many benefits, but it’s still new to most farmers,” said Carrie Brausieck, the District’s Agroforester and Senior Natural Resource Specialist. “In order for farmers to take the financial risk of implementing these systems, they need more information about the practices that will translate to our region, the crops that will perform well in our soils and climate, and what our local markets will support.” 

Regulators also need more data to understand the degree to which agroforestry practices, such as harvestable or “working” buffers, can protect water quality. Working buffers act as a second layer of protection for waterways. Native riparian plantings adjacent to surface waters are the first layer, and then perennial trees and shrubs producing high-value crops serve as the second. Together, these plant buffers help filter water of pollutants before it enters waterways, reducing pollution.

“We’re working with farmers and other partners to establish agroforestry trial sites throughout the region,” said Carrie. “They’ll not only serve as research locations, but also educational sites where we can hold events that give farmers, agency staff, and the public a chance to see agroforestry practices firsthand. There will even be opportunities for people to participate in plantings.” 

The primary funding for these projects comes from three sources:

Western Sustainable Agricultural Research and Education (SARE) Farmer/Rancher Grant

Thanks to this grant, we’ve been able to work with Raising Cane Ranch and WSU Extension to document the economic and ecological aspects of transitioning a traditional hay operation into a hay and cider apple alley cropping system. Last year we held our second SARE farm tour on the site. Both tours had excellent turnout, highlighting the community interest in this work. We will also be producing fact sheets documenting alley cropping in our region. 

Washington State Department of Agriculture Specialty Crop Block Grant

Through this project, we are collaborating with Whidbey Island and Skagit Conservation Districts and WSU Extension to evaluate agroforestry systems on wet, marginal farmlands. We’re partnering with four farms in the region to plant agroforestry trials where we’ll collect baseline data on soils, species viability, and the economics around specific crops that thrive in saturated soils. 

Western Sustainable Agriculture Research and Education (SARE) Research & Education Grant

This grant will make it possible for us to plant working buffers on three farms in North Puget Sound and monitor water quality. These buffers will consist of dense native plants adjacent to surface waters with high-value harvestable crops planted in a second zone adjacent to farm fields. We’ve installed water quality monitoring equipment on the three farms and will collect baseline soil and water quality data for a year before the working buffers are installed during the 2023/24 planting season.

“Agroforestry systems take years to grow and we’ll need additional time—beyond the life of these grants—to collect data that provides us with more information,” said Carrie. “Our intent is to secure additional rounds of funding that will allow us to continue to collect data as these systems mature.” 

Fortunately, our current grants have allowed us to establish long-term relationships with farmers who are interested in trialing these practices for years to come.

“We have a really innovative group of farms participating in these projects,” said Carrie. “They’re excited to help build a Puget Sound identity for agroforestry and to be an educational resource for other landowners in our region. We’re glad to be able to help them to do that.”

Interested in following these projects and learning more about their benefits? Sign up for Farm & Forest, our quarterly agroforestry newsletter highlighting local agroforesters, innovative practices, and more.