Increased soil organic carbon stocks under agroforestry: A survey of six different sites in France

Introduction: Agroforestry systems are land use management systems in which trees are grown in combinationwith crops or pasture in the same field. In silvoarable systems, trees are intercropped with arable crops, andin silvopastoral systems trees are combined with pasture for livestock. These systems may produce forage andtimber as well as providing ecosystem services such as climate change mitigation. Carbon (C) is stored in theaboveground and belowground biomass of the trees, and the transfer of organic matter from the trees to the soilcan increase soil organic carbon (SOC) stocks. Few studies have assessed the impact of agroforestry systems oncarbon storage in soils in temperate climates, as most have been undertaken in tropical regions