Watershed management implications of agroforestry expansion on Minnesota's farmlands

Abstract

Minnesota’s agricultural landscape is changing. The increasing use of woody perennials in agricultural fields, living snow fences, windbreaks, and riparian areas has important watershed management implications for agricultural watersheds in northwestern Minnesota. These changes in land use could lead to reductions in annual water yield, annual flood peaks, and dry season flows, with reduced non-point source pollution of streams, lakes and ground water. Where woody crops become an important part of a watershed, we expect a reversal of hydrologic changes on agricultural lands that have resulted from wetland drainage and extensive annual cropping that has taken place over the past century.

Parent Publication

• Land Stewardship in the 21st Century: The Contributions of Watershed Management; 2000 March 13-16; Tucson, AZ

Citation

Perry, C. Hobart; Miller, Ryan C.; Kaster, Anthony R.; Brooks, Kenneth N. 2000. Watershed management implications of agroforestry expansion on Minnesota's farmlands. In: Ffolliott, Peter F.; Baker Jr., Malchus B.; Edminster, Carleton B.; Dillon, Madelyn C.; Mora, Karen L., tech. coords. Land Stewardship in the 21st Century: The Contributions of Watershed Management; 2000 March 13-16; Tucson, AZ. Proc. RMRS-P-13. Fort Collins, CO: U.S. Department of Agriculture, Forest Service, Rocky Mountain Research Station. p. 339-342.