TY - GEN A1 - Böhm, Christian A1 - Kanzler, Michael A1 - Freese, Dirk T1 - Wind speed reduction as influenced by woody hedgerows grown for biomass in short rotation alley cropping systems in Germany T2 - Agroforestry Systems N2 - The cultivation of fast growing trees on agricultural sites is an area undergoing a growth in interest due to the rising demand for woody biomass as a source of bioenergy. Short rotation alley cropping systems (SRACS) represent a promising possibility to combine annual crops for food, fodder or bioenergy with woody plants for biomass production, doing so through an integration of hedgerows of fast growing trees into conventional agricultural sites. Against such developments, the question has arisen as to what extent hedgerows in SRACS can act as an effective windbreak despite their management-related low height of only a few meters. On the basis of multiannual recorded wind velocity data in high resolution at two sites in Germany, it could be shown that the wind speed on crop alleys was reduced significantly by such hedgerows. At the central point of 24 m wide crop alleys, the wind speed decreased on an annual average basis by more than 50 % when compared to the wind speeds of open field. The overall amount of reduction was strongly dependent on the location within the crop alleys, the height of trees, the distance between two hedgerows, and their orientation. In reflection upon these results, it was concluded that the establishment of SRACS could lead to enhanced soil protection against wind erosion and thus to ecological and economic benefits for agricultural sites. Y1 - 2014 UR - https://opus4.kobv.de/opus4-UBICO/frontdoor/index/index/docId/11676 SN - 1572-9680 VL - 88 IS - 4 SP - 579 EP - 591 ER -