France – Bouches-du-Rhône: agroforestry project amidst vineyards

Background & challenges

Marie and Olivier, owners and managers, run the La Forêt vineyardin the Bouches-du-Rhône department, located a few kilometres from the city of Arles.

Both are convinced trees have a role to play in the farming system and wish, by introducing them, to create a more pleasant and functional working environment thanks to the protection and shade provided, improve water management, reduce water stress on the grapevines, and prevent problems linked to soil erosion.

This project will begin the transition of the entire estate. For the past two years, a vegetation cover has been installed on the plots of land (a set of plants covering the soil, either permanent or temporary, to protect the soil against erosion, tackle certain kinds of pollution and save on fertilizer for future crops). The vineyard has 190 hectares of vines so will prove a good regional example of the shift to agroforestry in viticulture over large areas. A further 40 hectares or so are used for growing arable crops but will be planted with vines over the long term.

The farmers want to start by planting 1,100 metres of hedgerows and a few isolated trees within the plots, amidst the vines. Hedges already do exist but they are old, not particularly diverse in terms of plant species, damaged, and have gaps in them. The aim is to complete the project with a wide variety of species to create an ideal biotope for biodiversity, the environment, and to protect the grapevines, emblematic of this region!

Planting 1,246 trees of 28 different species on the vineyard plots will deliver many benefits, namely:

• The trees really do act as air-conditioners at plot level, protecting the vines from the effects of climate change, i.e. excess heat and late frosts, by generating a more humid microclimate and providing shade.
• Agroforestry trees develop a deep root system because they are competing with the vines. This encourages water to infiltrate thesoil and tackles the risk of erosion.
• Trees are carbon sinks. They not only help mitigate the effects of climate change, but also contribute to enriching the soil with carbon.
• Isolated trees and hedgerow trees will create a rich and diverse biodiversity that in turn will produce a variety of different fruit.

Works timeline

• October 2022: soil preparation, plant delivery and staking;
• November 2022 to January 2023: planting trees on the plots and site launch (farmer, AFAF);
• November 2023 to March 2025: replanting and first stage of maintenance with tree pruning training;
• 2024 to 2029: maintenance phases (pruning training and pruning).