Practice-oriented Area Studies toward restoration of degraded Japanese forests by utilizing traditional skills and knowledge inherited from swidden cultivation

2015 Fiscal Year Final Research Report

• Project/Area Number: 23310179
• Research Category: Grant-in-Aid for Scientific Research (B)
• Allocation Type: Single-year Grants
• Section: 一般
• Research Field: Area studies
• Research Institution: Kyoto Gakuen University
• Principal Investigator: Suzuki Reiji 京都学園大学, バイオ環境学部, 准教授 (60378825)
• Co-Investigator(Kenkyū-buntansha): NOMA Naohiko 滋賀県立大学, 環境科学部, 准教授 (80305557) ; KURODA Suehisa 滋賀県立大学, 人間文化学部, 名誉教授 (80153419) ; MASUDA Kazuya 高知大学, 自然科学系, 准教授 (90573733) ; SIMAGAMI Motoko 愛媛大学, SUIJI推進室, 准教授 (90447988)
• Co-Investigator(Renkei-kenkyūsha): IMAKITA Tetsuya 京都大学, 東南アジア研究所, 連携研究員 (80599449) ; OISHI Takanori 東京外国語大学, 世界言語社会教育センター, 特任講師 (30528724)
• Project Period (FY): 2011-04-01 – 2016-03-31
• Keywords: 在来知 / 里山再生 / 地域活性化 / 農・林循環モデル / 火入れ / 休閑地植生

Outline of Final Research Achievements

This research aims to establish sustainable crop production system in mountainous areas and rejuvenate abandoned satoyama forests by traditional swidden cultivation, which is environmentally sustainable agriculture in intermediate and mountainous areas of Japan. This study revealed that traditional skills and knowledge inherited from Japanese swidden cultivation　have been developed not to maximize crop yield but to minimize the risk from various environmental fluctuation. Results of this study showed that better quality of turnips can be produced by swidden cultivation and burning stimulates the germination of turnips. Vegetation survey in fallow forest suggested that degraded satoyama forest can be rejuvenated by slash-and-burn. From these results, four types of forest-agriculture rotation models were established for the restoration of degraded satoyama forests.

Free Research Field

地域研究