Skip to Content.
Sympa Menu

permaculture - [permaculture] Fast growing nitro fixers, semi tropics

permaculture@lists.ibiblio.org

Subject: permaculture

List archive

Chronological Thread  
  • From: Cory Brennan <cory8570@yahoo.com>
  • To: permaculture <permaculture@lists.ibiblio.org>, Open Permaculture <permaculture@openpermaculture.org>
  • Subject: [permaculture] Fast growing nitro fixers, semi tropics
  • Date: Thu, 18 Oct 2012 05:05:54 -0700 (PDT)

 Just found this resource for nitro fixing fodder legumes, wonderful! 
http://www.fao.org/ag/AGP/AGPC/doc/Publicat/Gutt-shel/x5556e00.htm#Contents

Would love to hear back from people on experience with legumes in any climate
similar to Florida - sugar sand soils, sometimes extreme wet/dry,
temperatures hot, humid in summer, often freezing in winter (down to 15
degrees or below in many areas). I am looking to plant many fast growing
multi use legume trees and want to make sure I am picking the best varieties.
Leucaena, gliricidia, sesbania, are considered "invasive" in Florida. I am
trying to find info on less invasive cultivars (though I agree with Toby
Hemenway's assessments on "opportunists" I hesitate to be the one to
personally bring thousands of opportunist trees into this relatively delicate
ecosystem). Leucaena lan (I believe this is lanceolata) is considered not
invasive but I have not found any of this cultivar. 

The native sweet acacia has gnarly thorns but is beautiful and works well
where thorns are not a problem. 

What experience do people have with the non nodulating nitro fixers like
cassia, etc, as far as actually putting nitrogen into the soils? I have not
used them enough to really know how they do. 

On a different note, I'm still trying to determine the nitro fixing
capabilities of gleditsia triacanthos in temperate climates. 
 
Koreen Brennan

www.growpermaculture.com
www.facebook.com/growpermaculturenow
www.meetup.com/sustainable-urban-agriculture-coalition
>From jasongerhardt@gmail.com Thu Oct 18 14:08:09 2012
Return-Path: <jasongerhardt@gmail.com>
X-Original-To: permaculture@lists.ibiblio.org
Delivered-To: permaculture@lists.ibiblio.org
Received: by lists.ibiblio.org (Postfix, from userid 20217)
id B925DE8DE3; Thu, 18 Oct 2012 14:08:09 -0400 (EDT)
X-Spam-Checker-Version: SpamAssassin 3.3.1 (2010-03-16) on
mailman1.ibiblio.org
X-Spam-Level:
X-Spam-Status: No, score=-2.8 required=5.0 tests=AWL,BAYES_00,DKIM_SIGNED,
DKIM_VALID,DKIM_VALID_AU,HTML_MESSAGE,RCVD_IN_DNSWL_LOW autolearn=ham
version=3.3.1
Received: from mail-qc0-f177.google.com (mail-qc0-f177.google.com
[209.85.216.177])
by lists.ibiblio.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id 1E50BE8D25
for <permaculture@lists.ibiblio.org>;
Thu, 18 Oct 2012 14:08:08 -0400 (EDT)
Received: by mail-qc0-f177.google.com with SMTP id u28so7364680qcs.36
for <permaculture@lists.ibiblio.org>;
Thu, 18 Oct 2012 11:08:08 -0700 (PDT)
Received: by 10.224.206.132 with SMTP id fu4mr19023455qab.29.1350583688600;
Thu, 18 Oct 2012 11:08:08 -0700 (PDT)
MIME-Version: 1.0
Received: by 10.49.35.232 with HTTP; Thu, 18 Oct 2012 11:07:48 -0700 (PDT)
From: Jason Gerhardt <jasongerhardt@gmail.com>
Date: Thu, 18 Oct 2012 12:07:48 -0600
Message-ID:
<CADEhrO=FuTqQRhPxiUXah+ixzgUYLdM8GHaAoaL7AwCiJGTXOg@mail.gmail.com>
To: permaculture@lists.ibiblio.org
Content-Type: text/plain; charset=ISO-8859-1
X-Content-Filtered-By: Mailman/MimeDel 2.1.9
Subject: [permaculture] Fast growing nitro fixers, semi tropics
X-BeenThere: permaculture@lists.ibiblio.org
X-Mailman-Version: 2.1.9
Precedence: list
Reply-To: permaculture <permaculture@lists.ibiblio.org>
List-Id: permaculture <permaculture.lists.ibiblio.org>
List-Unsubscribe: <http://lists.ibiblio.org/mailman/listinfo/permaculture>,
<mailto:permaculture-request@lists.ibiblio.org?subject=unsubscribe>
List-Archive: <https://lists.ibiblio.org/sympa/arc/permaculture>
List-Post: <mailto:permaculture@lists.ibiblio.org>
List-Help: <mailto:sympa@lists.ibiblio.org?subject=HELP>
List-Subscribe: <http://lists.ibiblio.org/mailman/listinfo/permaculture>,
<mailto:permaculture-request@lists.ibiblio.org?subject=subscribe>
X-List-Received-Date: Thu, 18 Oct 2012 18:08:09 -0000

Cory,
Gleditsia triacanthos (honey locust) has not been shown to nodulate, but
has been proven to have a higher nitrogen content in biomass than other
non-n-fixers. This indicates it might have some actinorrhizal nitrogen
fixing capability. At any rate, they are likely a low n-fixer. I like them
as a useful dappled shade creating canopy tree though, which might be
helpful for you in the subtropics.

Amorpha fruiticosa is also native to Florida and has been used in alley
cropping trials in the subtropics.

Members of the Myricaceae family (wax-myrtles) fix nitrogen too.

Are you set on nitrogen fixation from a tree? If not, you can use winged
bean, cowpea, strophostyles helvola (which does extremely well on sands and
produces an edible dry-bean crop).

Just some thoughts from my limited experience in the subtropics.

--
Jason Gerhardt
Designer and Educator




Archive powered by MHonArc 2.6.24.

Top of Page