Agroforestry Layout (Mexican Sunflower) & New System

The placement / layout / row orientation is something I've been slowly figuring out for the last few years (and what 'best practice' is for my context)
Hopefully this video saves you a few years of trials and let's you get straight into things!
More content on Instagram, where you can ask me any questions or to film/share something specific.
/ byron.in.new.zealand
Enjoy!

[@MateoKupstysChica]

It was very useful to me to see exactly how you organize all the plants (direction, group and distance) depending on its function and needs. Thank you very much!

[@byron.in.new.zealand]

Glad it was helpful!

[@jeffu7218]

Another great video thanks Byron. Love what you do.

[@byron.in.new.zealand]

Thank you mate 🙏

[@danpryde5503]

Awesome Byron! Learning so much mate. With a system laid out like this, where is your pathway that allows you to maintain/harvest from the main tree row? Do you just walk on the organic matter (where you had laid the banana stems?) Or am I misunderstanding what Im seeing... Thank you mate! 💪

[@thehuntfortruth]

"Get those learnings!!" 😂 But for realsies, you're right! Thanks for sharing this

[@byron.in.new.zealand]

Haha thank you!

[@taniah6290]

Another great video, thank you

[@andresamplonius315]

Que te salgan bien picosos tus rocotos! 😂
Pasto Vetiver podria serte util, carbono junto al nitrogeno del Mexican sunflower.

[@phoebeluzinda5555]

Thanks for the video
Am interested to know the spacing between each tree

[@rob-in-peru]

Any chance of an update on this same section in this video?

[@lynbarrett2487]

Really appreciate your advice 👍

[@jacobthompson603]

Hi Byron, I just started following your work. For the herbaceous plants, is the main purpose for them to become nutrients/soil? Thank you for your dedication and amazing work. I would like to try this out!

[@byron.in.new.zealand]

Happy to hear you’re into this stuff! Some herbaceous plants are edible like yacon, rhubarb etc. but if they’re exclusively for chop & drop, it’s a different set of purposes

[@andresamplonius315]

Probare la idea cuando llegue el momento. Suena bien.

[@Floridafilipinofruitforest]

Good job brother

[@KidKenobiii]

Great video thank you 🙏 are there any citrus varieties you'd not recommend adding into an agroforesty line like that? Thanks!

[@byron.in.new.zealand]

Not that I can think of!

[@MarviRafaelMontecillo]

Thank you for sharing. Im trying to use mexican sunflower, do you plant the cuttings directly in the soil?

[@byron.in.new.zealand]

Usually they’ll have been establushing root systems in a pot at least a few weeks before they go in. Can go in directly as fresh cutttings if being planted into loose soil, but in this case they’re being planted into established grass so they need that head-start

[@cheeseboy777]

Thanks very much, really enjoying your videos as I'm setting up a small banana plantation utilizing some of your principles here in (sometimes) sunny Gisborne. Went to check out urban bounty but seems to have gone?

[@byron.in.new.zealand]

Thanks for watching! Check out Subtropica - They’re an awesome food forest nursery based right in Gisborne. Simon & Kelsey, they’re incredible people. They ship plants all around NZ - Pretty sure they’ve got a local sale happening this weekend at their site too.

[@cheeseboy777]

@@byron.in.new.zealand Yup they sure do, I'm heading there tomorrow morning! Take care.

[@rogerspike2402]

I've got two questions about the bana grass and sugar cane row.
Where will you put the organic material? In the same row, the tree one or both?
And what will you do with that line in the future when you get an abundance ecosystem? Converting it to a tree row? The many bana grass and sugar cane roots would let anything else to grow?
Thank you for sharing knowledge!!

[@byron.in.new.zealand]

Probably will depend on the moment, and where I feel like needs it the most! Will update as the system matures

[@mcmac1814]

Hi Byron, great video!
Some questions:
How do you control bana grass or other rhizomatous/invasive biomass producers? How to keep them in their line?
And at some point you may want to terminate them, right? How to do it? Thanks!

[@byron.in.new.zealand]

Heavy pruning until the light conditions change and they’re no-longer the vigorous growers they once were

[@WasPhantom]

When you say urban bounty, where were you meaning? I cannot see anywhere in NZ that looks similar?

[@byron.in.new.zealand]

Head to Subtropica online nursery. Urban Bounty no longer exists

[@WasPhantom]

@@byron.in.new.zealand Thanks!

[@acasas28]

Will the banana pups compete with the fruit trees

[@OffGridHawaii]

Are you concerned at all about the allelopathy of the Mexican Sunflower?

[@byron.in.new.zealand]

Embrace it to delete the grass

[@OffGridHawaii]

@@byron.in.new.zealand definitely good for getting rid of the grasses but what if grass is not an issue in a particular spot?

[@matthewphares4588]

There’s no way the fruit tree line is from seed (they don’t grow that fast) and they’re way to close together. This means you purchased seedlings and wasted some money because you will have to thin them out later. They’re literally one foot apart on center and the canopies can reach 20 feet. You can keep the fruit tree canopy trimmed to 5 feet diameter but that still means you have limbs of each tree growing 1.5 feed beyond the trunk of the next fruit tree.

[@byron.in.new.zealand]

Clearly not everything is from seed - Many things can happily occupy this density in different canopy layers. Suggest you do more research

[@andresamplonius315]

"Abisinian banana"? You mean Ensete? "Bana grass"?

[@rak366]

Hello, are food forests commercially remunerative? And till they grow can we have annuals? Thank you