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Performance of biological erosion control in New Zealand soft rock hill terrain

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Abstract

An investigation of the performance of biological erosion control measures applied to support pastoral land use in soft rock hill country has yielded information which can be applied in the design of more sustainable, silvopastoral land uses. Vegetation-based treatments, centred particularly on use of fast-growing poplars and willows, have successfully controlled a range of gully erosion and earthflow mass movement problems. Treatments were found to be successful at 63% of earthflow sites, and 42% of gully erosion sites examined, using an evaluation technique known to be conservative. A total of 278 sites were included in the study. Relationships between performance and site and treatment attributes allowed minimum tree configurations to be specified in terms of tree spacing and coverage of erosion landforms. Although further data collection would allow refinement of these minimum specifications, the need for such data depends on the value of tree crop versus pastoral production.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Landcare Research New Zealand Ltd, Private Bag 11 052, Palmerston North, New Zealand

    R. C. Thompson & P. G. Luckman

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  1. R. C. Thompson
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  2. P. G. Luckman
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Thompson, R.C., Luckman, P.G. Performance of biological erosion control in New Zealand soft rock hill terrain. Agroforest Syst 21, 191–211 (1993). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00705230

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