A Sustainable Integrated Agroforestry System

Luis Raul Comolli^1*Esteban Schegg²Cristian Infuleski³Hugo Fassola⁴Alejandra von Wallis⁴Sara Barth⁴Nardia M. Bulfe⁴Paola A. Gonzalez⁴Maria Elena Gauchat⁴Nestor Munareto⁵Victoria Gross⁶Paula Cruz⁷Fabio Wyss⁸

• ¹Independent researcher, Basel, CA, Switzerland
• ²Instituto Linea Cuchilla (ILC), Misiones, Argentina (https://ilc.edu.ar/), Ruiz de Montoya, Argentina
• ³Productores Yerba Mate SCL, Santo Pipo, Misiones, Argentina (https://www.pipore.com.ar/), Santo Pipo, Argentina
• ⁴Instituto Nacional de Tecnología Agropecuaria (INTA), Estación Experimental Agropecuaria Montecarlo, Misiones, Argentina (https://inta.gob.ar/montecarlo), Monte Carlo, Argentina
• ⁵Dirección General de Yerba Mate y Té, Ministerio del Agro y la Producción, Posadas, Misiones, Argentina (https://inta.gob.ar/personas/munaretto.nestor), Posadas, Argentina
• ⁶School of Forest Sciences, of the National University of Misiones (UnaM), Posadas, Argentina
• ⁷Institute of Subtropical Biology (IBS, Iguazú node –UnaM)- Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas -CONICET (National Scientific and Technical Research Council), Iguazu, Argentina
• ⁸Instituto Nacional de Tecnología Agropecuaria (INTA), Centro Regional Misiones, Posadas, Misiones, Argentina (https://inta.gob.ar/personas/wyss.victor), Posadas, Argentina

Agricultural intensification has boosted global food supply but has also driven deforestation, soil degradation, biodiversity loss, and greenhouse gas emissions, posing critical sustainability challenges. In response, alternative practices such as agroforestry have emerged, yet few long-term experimental systems exist that integrate high biodiversity with commercial perennial crops. Over 25 years, we have developed and refined a perennial, multi-species agroforestry system in northeastern Argentina, integrating Ilex paraguariensis (yerba mate) and 19 associated tree species. Our planned experimental variables were designed to measure crop yields, soil restoration metrics (including soil organic matter content), and detrimental psyllid Gyropsylla spegazziniana. Our results demonstrate that this biodiverse, perennial system restores degraded soils through sustained increases in organic matter, stabilizes or enhances yerba mate yields relative to monoculture controls, substantially diminishes detrimental psyllid infestation through natural regulation, and facilitates broader biodiversity recovery including avian and mammal recolonization. A striking and unplanned finding was the system's remarkable resilience during the historically unprecedented 2021–2022 climate extremes in South America, including record-breaking drought, heatwaves, and wildfires. Plants grown within the agroforestry system showed markedly less stress compared to monocultures, underscoring its adaptive capacity. These findings highlight the ecological and agronomic advantages of agroforestry as a scalable alternative to monoculture. By mimicking natural forests, our system demonstrates how biodiversity-driven complexity enhances resilience, reduces reliance on external inputs, and provides climate adaptation and mitigation benefits. We advocate for integrated agroforestry as a vital pathway to meet the 2030 biodiversity targets of the CBD COP-15 and to align agriculture with the goals of the UN Decade on Ecosystem Restoration.