Research on Oil Palm Agroforestry – Focus: EFForTS Biodiversity
Enrichtment Experiment
EFForTS BEE – Experimental Design
Here, you can see how the EFForTS-BEE placed their plots within the field. The minimum distance between plots is 85m. Since the implementation of the plots in 2013 and 2014 no fertilizers and herbicides were used and no weeding was applied within the plots.
Figure 8: Plot locations and sizes with tree species arrangement within a monoculture oil-palm landscape[8]. Ctrl = Control plot.
Removed oil palms and newly planted trees per plot:
Plot size
Oil palms in plots (affter thinning)
Newly planted trees
25m²
0 (plots are in between oil palms)
6
100m²
0-1 (in eight cases the only palm in the plot was removed)
25
400m²
max. 20
100
1600m²
max. 20
400
- The oil palms in the plantation are planted in a 9mx9m triangular grid.
- The newly planted trees were arranged in a 2mx2m triangular grid.
- Trees of the same species were planted with the maximum possible distance between them.
- The minimum distance between tree islands/experimental plots is 85m.
- Information adapted from[8][9][10].
