Table of contents

The 4th International Conference in Agroforestry 2022 (ICAF2022) 15-17 November 2022, Promenade Hotel, Kota Kinabalu, Sabah

The 4th International Conference in Agroforestry (ICAF2022), "Agroforestry for Sustainable and Resilient Communities", is organised by the Faculty of Tropical Forestry, Universiti Malaysia Sabah. It was organised in collaboration with the Malaysia Society of Agroforestry (MySAF) and the Southeast Asian Network for Agroforestry Education (SEANAFE). The ICAF2022 has brought together scientists, academics, practitioners, and stakeholders in agroforestry and related fields to share relevant experiences, research findings, new concepts and proposals, and innovation. The international platform encourages the exchange of ideas and the forging collaborative partnerships.

The theme of the 4th ICAF 2022 is "Agroforestry for Sustainable and Resilient Communities". It aims to provide opportunities for researchers to interact, network, and exchange ideas, highlight current and ongoing research activities in the field related to agroforestry, and strengthen multi-disciplinary cooperation to advance research and development at the national and international levels. Areas of research highlighted in this conference were i) Agroforestry System (silviculture, hi-technology application), ii) Agroforestry Products (post-harvest and value-added process), iii) Agroforestry, Biodiversity Conservation and Ecosystem Services, iv) Social Forestry Related Agroforestry and v) Sustainable Natural Resources. The research areas are important and relevant to the conference theme that has beneficial outcomes for building resilient communities.

List of Editors, Sponsorship and Funding acknowledgements, Organising Committee ICAF2022, Main Committee, International Scientific Committee, Participants are available in this pdf.

All papers published in this volume have been reviewed through processes administered by the Editors. Reviews were conducted by expert referees to the professional and scientific standards expected of a proceedings journal published by IOP Publishing.

1. Type of peer review: Double Anonymous

2. Conference submission management system: Morressier

3. Number of submissions received: 38

4. Number of submissions sent for review: 38

5. Number of submissions accepted: 20

6. Acceptance Rate (Submissions Accepted / Submissions Received × 100): 52.63 %

7. Average number of reviews per paper: 2.00

8. Total number of reviewers involved: 27

9. Contact person for queries:

Name: Walter Lintangah

Affiliation: Universiti Malaysia Sabah - Faculty of Tropical Forestry

Email: walterjl@ums.edu.my

* means value has been edited

About 3.4 million hectares of oil palm (Elaeis guineensis Jacq.) plantations occupied the forest area in Indonesia by 2019. The enrichment of monoculture oil palm using forest tree species became one of the solutions toward the forest transition processes within a target period associated with the social forestry program. Within this context, smallholder farmers acquired the right to manage oil palm plantations inside forest areas through social forestry permits. Smallholder farmers had to plant and maintain 100 forest tree species per hectare. Research on oil palm agroforestry adoption focused on the factors and barriers to the adoption process and little about the outcome of the adoption. Therefore, this research aimed to predict smallholders' peak adoption of oil palm agroforestry. Data was collected using Focus Group Discussion (FGD) with 133 members of the forest farmer group in Sungai Jernih Village, Jambi Province. Data were analysed using Adoption and Diffusion Outcome Prediction Tool (ADOPT) to predict peak level adoption and the time to reach peak adoption. Sensitivity analysis was conducted to assess changes in oil palm agroforestry adoption affected by 22 variables. The results showed that peak level adoption and time to reach peak adoption of oil palm agroforestry are 79% and 19 years, respectively. This research suggested that oil palm agroforestry adoption needed external assistance from the government.

Employing the descriptive method of research, this study was conducted to determine the "kaingin" farming practices of the Hanunuos in the indigenous communities of Magsaysay, Occidental Mindoro. A set of items was developed, validated, and used as interview schedule in gathering data from the 60 Hanunuo farmers. Focus group discussion was also conducted. Frequency and percentage distribution, standard deviation, and weighted means were used. The Hanunuo farmers were middle aged (mean=42 years old); mostly females; elementary undergraduate; affiliated to at least one organization; and had long farming experience in a 1.03-hectare "kaingin" farm acquired through Certificate of Ancestral Domain Title. Their "kaingin" farm productivity was low, mainly from rice and corn. Legumes, root crops, vegetables and fruit crops were likewise grown. Similar to other "kaingin" farmers, the Hanunuos adopted mixed or diversified cropping, direct sowing, zero tillage, no fertilization, and less use of chemicals. Harvesting was manual and they practiced sun drying and seed storage. Confronted by low yields and income, technical support services must be provided to enhance farm productivity, and crops that could maximize the potential of "kaingin" farms must be identified. They must be properly educated for the protection and conservation of upland resources.

This study looks into a recurring issue that adoption of organic farming is problematic despite the Philippine government's big investment on its massive promotion and notwithstanding of the technology's potential for delivering economic, environmental, and social benefits. The study involved two major players—a private enterprise and an organic farmers' association in organic farming. It argued that a private enterprise perceived to be resource-rich is likely to sustain adoption of organic farming compared to farmers belonging to the people's organization. Mixed method and participatory data gathering techniques were employed. Both groups practiced organic farming techniques endorsed by the Philippine National Standards on Organic Agriculture. The private enterprise is engaged in the production of forest trees, fruits, vegetables, spices, rice, swine, and cattle. The farmers' association is producing high value crops such as rice, onion, watermelon, and garlic. However, both have experienced some constraints categorized as political and regulatory that may prevent them from sustaining organic farming in the future. These constraints may hamper their desire to contribute to improving people's well-being while ensuring the integrity and protection of the environment.

The communities of small islands have local wisdom in the agroforestry system as a form of adaptation to agricultural technology in a dry land with dry climates. This study aims to find and explain agroforestry systems based on local wisdom in small islands. The study was conducted in April-December 2021. The case study is located on Wangi-Wangi Island, Wakatobi Regency, Southeast Sulawesi Province with the consideration that this area can represent the characteristics of the agroforestry system in small island communities in the Southeast Sulawesi archipelago. Data were collected through observation, interviews, and literature studies using the triangulation method. Data were analyzed descriptively and qualitatively using historical and phenomenological approaches. The results showed that there were agroforestry systems based on local wisdom, namely weli'a, rawu'a, and ontoala. The three systems are applied to different topographical characteristics of the land and have been proven to be socially, economically, and ecologically beneficial.

Soil amendments are known to improve soil structure, increase moisture content, improve fertility and facilitate soil microbial functions. The objective of this study was to determine the effects of gypsum on colonization of arbuscular mycorrhizas in teak plantations planted as fences for napier grass. Teak seedlings were planted in October 2019 and divided into 4 blocks, A, B, C and D comprising 32 seedlings. Plots of A and C were treated with treatments of 3 kg of gypsum and 3 kg of compost (1:1), whereas B and D were control plots. NPK fertilizer was applied at every seedling at the rate of 0.05 kg for all blocks. Seedling heights and mean basal diameter (mm) were assessed at 9 months after planting. Soil samples for microbial study were taken before and after planting at 30 cm depth and screened for mycorrhizal spores and roots at the end of the experiment. Increased values for seedling heights and mean basal diameter (20-35%) were recorded for treatments B and C. Results pointed out that the amount of spore percentages were somewhat reduced in C and D and a slight increase was seen in treatments A and B. Root inoculation percentages in A and C were somewhat higher (1- 6%) as compared to B and D (0.5%). Early findings point out that application of gypsum and composts were not detrimental to the microbial population of arbuscular mycorrhiza as these treatments showed higher presence of hyphae and vesicles in fine roots and did not hamper physical growth. The role of soil amendments needs to be further investigated in terms of enhancing soil microbial population.

Tropical peat forest ecosystems are unique and have multiple social, economic, and ecological benefits. Factors such as excessive drainage and frequent fires cause peatland degradation. Rehabilitation of deforested and drained tropical peat swamp forests is globally relevant in the context of deforestation and forest degradation. One management system that can be implemented in these conditions combines crops and forest plants (agroforestry). The challenges of the agroforestry application strategy in forest parks are the status of the land, which is a conservation area, and the characteristics of the surrounding community and field conditions. Based on these conditions, it is necessary to conduct this research to support the Orang Kayo Hitam (OKH) forest park development strategy appropriately. The research was conducted in May – June 2021 and used Force Field Analysis based on the opinions of 231 respondents. Based on the research results, it is known that respondents stated that the highest internal driving force is motivation to improve family's economic from agroforestry products (score 52) and the external one is availability of endemic plants (score 45). The respondent's opinion about the highest internal inhibiting factor is related to public knowledge of benefits from endemic plant species (score 39), while for external is related to market networks for Non Timber Forest Products (NTFP) market (score 43).

The study investigated the effects of a novel biochar-biofertilizer-vermicompost formulation on the rhizosphere soil microbial community and growth of mature T. cacao trees planted in three farms in the provinces of Batangas (Lipa) and Laguna (Liliw and Magdalena), Philippines. Cacao trees were amended with MYKORICH® (MR) without or with 15% bamboo biochar (15% BB) and vermicompost. In the three years span of the experiment, stem diameter increments of BB-treated cacao in Magdalena and Lipa were 5% and 19% higher than the control (56.09 mm and 49.08 mm), respectively, whereas MR and MR + BB-treated trees in Liliw were 34-35% higher relative to control. Soil microbial analysis showed that mycorrhizal spore counts in BB-amended soils were 133% (Liliw), 262% (Magdalena) and 109% (Lipa) higher than the control. Nitrogen-fixing bacteria obtained from MR + BB-amended soils in Liliw were 216% higher than control, and 81% higher relative to control in BB-treated soils in Lipa. Soil nitrogen and potassium contents of the three cacao farms also improved by 26-85%. With the significant effect of bamboo biochar and mycorrhizal fertilizer, alone or in combination, on the growth of cacao, the microbial community and nutrient status of the cacao rhizosphere soil, this technology would be beneficial to cacao farmers and to almost all crops in an agroforest ecosystem.

Coffee (Coffea spp.) is considered as one of the high-value commercial crops of the world. The study assessed the growth of mature and fruiting coffee in an already-established agroforestry ecosystems amended with biofertilizer, biochar, and vermicompost mixture. Field experiments were conducted on three coffee farms within the provinces of Laguna and Batangas, Luzon Island, Philippines (coded as Sta. Maria (Laguna), Lipa1 and Lipa2 (Batangas) with treatments: control, MYKORICH® biofertilizer (MRICH), 15% bamboo biochar (BB) and MRICH+BB. All trees were applied with one kg vermicompost per tree during the start of the experiment applied at 3-4 in below the soil surface, half m away from the base of the tree. MRICH+BB consistently gave a high significant increase of 221% stem diameter increment in Sta. Maria and 214% in Lipa2 after six months to three years. In Lipa1, BB treatment gave the highest increment (20.75 mm). Soil in Sta. Maria gave the highest spore count (136 per 50 g soil) when treated with MRICH. MRICH also promoted the highest nitrogen-fixing bacterial count (15.43 CFU x 10⁶) in Lipa2. Highest fruit yield was gathered from MRICH+BB in Sta. Maria (2,010 g per tree) and Lipa1 (1,640 g per tree) while MRICH in Lipa2 (1,390 g tree). Positive effect was also observed on soil physico-chemical characteristics (OM, N, P, K, CEC) when inoculated with either MRICH or MRICH+BB treatments. These findings can be of significance to develop a low-input sustainable system on agroforestry soils using combined biofertilizers, biochar and vermicompost.

Rehabilitation of degraded forest areas in the Forest Research and Education (FRE) Wanagama 1 was conducted by planting trees and crops in various agroforestry schemes. This approach is aimed to establish a successful plantation while allowing local people gaining benefits through farming in the forest land. At present, the FRE Wanagama 1 has several forests stands with various ground cover vegetations. This research was carried out to estimate the contribution of the forest for storing carbon, by estimating aboveground biomass (stand, ground cover, and litter) as well as soil organic carbon. Results of this study reveal that from the above-ground perspective, Swietenia stand stores the greatest carbon, approximately (229.35 Mg.ha⁻¹), followed by those of Eucalyptus stand (135.91 Mg.ha⁻¹), Acacia stand (69.01 Mg.ha⁻¹), and Gliricidia stand (59.35 Mg.ha⁻¹). The lowest level of carbon storage is observed in Melaleuca stand (5.36 Mg.ha⁻¹) due to annual harvest of the leaves for oil production. The highest soil organic carbon was found in Swietenia stand (135.10 Mg.ha⁻¹), followed by those of Gliricidia stand (131.26 Mg.ha⁻¹), Eucalyptus stand (107.53 Mg.ha⁻¹), and Acacia stand (105.61 Mg.ha⁻¹). Whereas the lowest soil organic carbon was found in Melaleuca stand (67.59 Mg.ha⁻¹). Up to 61.78% and 92.04% of the total carbon in each stand and soil can be used to store carbon, respectively. However, the agroforestry scheme must be wisely chosen, otherwise they will be significat reduction in the capability of the stand and the soil in storing carbon.

By 2010, Sumatera Island of Indonesia had lost the highest annual forest cover due to oil palm (Elaeis guineensis Jacq.) expansion, leading to adverse environmental impacts. The introduction of oil palm agroforestry (OPAF) within the social forestry program was to reduce these environmental impacts, conserve biodiversity, enhance wildlife habitat, and improve smallholder household resilience. However, the information on OPAF implementation progress and its benefits and ecological impacts still need to be explored. This research aims to measure the diversity of birds in young OPAF by comparing birds' diversity in four land covers: young oil palm agroforestry (three years after establishment), old oil palm agroforestry (20 years after establishment), oil palm monoculture, and secondary forest. We indicated 43 bird species from 25 families across all land covers. The secondary forest had the highest valueof bird diversity index value of 2.80. The second was the first young oil palm agroforestry (2.42), followed by old OPAF, oil palm monoculture, and the second young OPAF with index values of 2.30, 2.19, and 2.16, respectively. Enrichment planting on oil palm monoculture through OPAF development could help restore tropical forests' structural complexity while also providing more suitable bird habitats.

As a mitigation target for Indonesia's Forestry and Other Land Use (FOLU) Net Sink 2030, Gunung Halimun Salak National Park (GHSNP) has a high potential. However, there is a lack of data on tree species composition and vegetation cover, particularly in the traditional zone (TZ). This study aims to estimate the vegetation cover of GHSNP in 2016, 2019, and 2022, as well as tree species composition in the TZ compared to the wilderness zone (WZ). This study used Sentinel-2 imagery and plot establishment for vegetation analysis in both zones. The most dominant class of vegetation cover in GHSNP from 2016 to 2022 is in class 5 which has highly dense vegetation. The large area class 5 increased by around 2.17% from 2016 to 2022. There were 17 species found in TZ and 24 species in WZ. Local communities are applying the traditional agroforestry of Poh-pohan (Pilea trinervia) as the main commodity and Pinus merkusii for the shade trees. P. merkusii and Maesopsis eminii are the most frequently found in TZ and WZ due to the former status of GHSNP as a production forest. Agroforestry systems can enhance biodiversity as a conservation effort and Indonesia's FOLU Net Sink 2030 actions.

The growing urbanization has greatly reduced biodiversity. Home gardening is a crucial approach for biodiversity preservation, particularly in metropolitan settings with a dearth of green spaces. The goal of this study is to determine the types of trees and crops growing in urban villages in Kota Kinabalu, as well as the socioeconomic and environmental benefits that urban residents receive from their home gardens, which serve as urban forests. In four urban villages, the data were gathered through observation and household questionnaires. Interviews have been conducted with 217 respondents in total. The results showed that the respondents planted a total of 14 different crop and tree types, with Misai Kucing (Orthosiphon stamineus) and mango tree (Mangifera spp.), Pandan (Pandanus sp.) and Red Onion (Allium ascalonicum) being the most popular trees and crops. The garden's key contributions were lowering the temperature in the residential areas and as a leisure activity area. There was little correlation between the social benefit of urban forestry and the function of home gardens such as for food supply, medicinal use and hobby. Due to the small-scale home gardens, the economic contribution was little but complemented domestic requirements. The promotion of agroforestry systems in urban areas needs to be stepped up to preserve biodiversity, meet the demand for food and medicine, and provide environmental benefits.

One of the important functions of the forest is to provide water to the community. Improvement of water services from forest areas requires the community's participation. This study aims at (1) identifying the community's willingness to pay for improved water services and (2) determining factors affecting the community's willingness to pay. This study is located in Bayas Jaya Villages and the upland area of Kedondong Sub-District, Pesawaran District, Lampung Province. The study interviewed 75 farmers of 3 water services management, i.e.: (1) independent, (2) PAMSIMAS, and (3) PDAM. Each management water service was represented by 25 members who were randomly selected. Objective one is analyzed using descriptive analysis, and objective two is analyzed using a regression analysis model. The study suggests that, on average community received 10,6m³ per day, which is far higher than their daily consumed, i.e., 460 l per day. However, water surplus is not optimized as they are drained to the local sewer. Further, 56% of the community is willing to pay should water services be improved. The average willingness to pay is Rp 440,357.14 annually per family. Factors affecting the community's willingness to pay, include (1) the PDAM model, (2) the PAMSIMAS model, (3) age, and (4) daily water discharge to family.

This study aims to examine the willingness to pay (WTP) of visitors to pay an entrance fee for conservation purposes in Serinsim Substation, Kinabalu Geopark. The Contingent Valuation Method (CVM) was put into the application as the elicitation method. A total of 161 respondents were distributed using convenience sampling; however, 11 questionnaires were not usable because respondents did not completely answer them. An open-ended eliciting method was adopted and multiple linear regression was used to analyse the contingent valuation method analysis. The result shows that a total of 113 (75.3%) respondents are willing to pay more for the admission fee if the conservation fee were to be increased, while 37 (24.7%) respondents are unwilling to pay more. In addition, age and frequency of visits are the independent variables that have the greatest impact on visitors' willingness to make. Admission fees can be increased to generate more revenue for Serinsim Substation's efforts to conserve resources.

Glued laminated timber (glulam) is a great building material with strong mechanical properties that comprises laminated layers of wood (lamina) glued together with long-lasting structural adhesives. As the supply of large dimensional lumber for construction projects has been in shortage, glulam is the ideal material to replace the lumber because it can be made in various sizes and shapes, including unique arches using relatively small dimensional lumber. This research aims to investigate the effects of different lamina assembly patterns and adhesive spread rates on the physical and mechanical properties of rubberwood glulam. For this purpose, the lab scale of the 3-ply glulam was made from homogenous grades lamina of low-MOE, average-MOE, and high-MOE. In addition, the lab scale of the 3-ply glulam was also produced from mixed grades lamina of low-high-low-MOE and high-low-high-MOE. The glulam was tested to evaluate the physical and mechanical properties based on the Japanese Industrial Standards for glulam (JAS 234-2003). The results show that the lamina assembly patterns significantly affect the mechanical properties of the glulam. Accordingly, the glulam made from a high-MOE lamina at its compression and tension surfaces has the best mechanical properties compared to that made from the other assembly patterns. In addition, although the difference was insignificant, the results showed that adhesive spread rate has positively affected the mechanical properties of the glulam. The results showed that Rubberwood has the potential to be used as raw material for glulam production.

An in vivo experiment was conducted at the College of Agriculture, CMU, Musuan, Bukidnon, Philippines on corn and peanut seeds in order to assess the antifungal effects of the different concentrations of powdered Bidens pilosa leaves against postharvest pathogens. B. pilosa powder was thoroughly mixed at varying amounts as treatments to corn and peanut seeds and observed for the presence of fungal growths during the observation period of up to 35 days. Data gathering revealed the occurrence of 5 fungal species namely Aspergillus flavus, A. niger, Fusarium sp., Rhizopus sp., and M. phaseolina. The best antifungal treatment is the chemical fungicide Captan, however, T₅ (30 g of B. pilosa/kilo of seeds) shows the potential to inhibit the growth of A. flavus, Rhizopus sp., and A. niger in corn while T₄ (20 g of B. pilosa/kilo of seeds) had the potential to inhibit or prevent the growth of the two Aspergillus spp. in peanut. It was also noted that for corn, the least fungal count with a value of 1.00 was noted in T₅ (30 g of B. pilosa/kilo of seeds) while for peanut, T₄ (20 g of B. pilosa/kilo of seeds) had the potential to limit the growth of pathogenic fungi with a fungal count value of 1.33. The application of B. pilosa did not affect significantly the percentage germination of corn but with peanut, T₅ (30 g of B. pilosa/kilo of seeds) shows a promising performance. On Seedling Vigor Index (SVI), the application of B. pilosa did not significantly influence the SVI of corn but for peanut, T₅ (30 g of B. pilosa/kilo of seeds) has shown potential as it shows a better performance as compared with the other treatments. In this research, B. pilosa exhibited its potential as a biofungicide.

Shorea balangeran is a potential paludicultural commodity for industry and a medicinal commodity for malaria, diabetes, and diarrhea. This type of plant has proven to be very good for peatland restoration, but it takes a long time to take advantage of the timber. This study aims to analyze the financial feasibility of the S. balangeran plant cultivation business in Tanjung Taruna village. Primary data were gathered through interviews with farmers who grow S. balangeran, while secondary data for some of the assumptions used were gathered from a variety of related literature. The analysis showed that the cultivation was quite feasible, with a positive NPV of IDR. 13,131,668. However, from the calculation of IRR 12%, BCR 1.01, and PP 20 years, it was clear that the business was feasible with a high risk if planted in monoculture. Therefore, the cultivation of S. balangeran needs to be done through intercropping or agroforestry.

Employing descriptive method, this study explored the potential of non-timber agroforestry products as sources for livelihood of Tau-buid in Sitio Tamisan, Poypoy, Calintaan, Occidental Mindoro. A total of 80 Tau-buid were interviewed using an interview schedule. Data gathered were analyzed using frequency, percentage, mean, and rank. The Tau-buid respondents were mostly males at prime working age; married with household as source of labor; speak local languages; no formal education; cultivate own farm; and affiliated to an organization. They obtained food and income from fruits, cereals, root crops, vegetables, honey, pig, chicken, bassinet, cogon, bilao, bulrush, bamboo, broom, and basket from forest and agroforestry farms. Banana, rice and cassava were top three food products while bassinet, cogon and bilao were the three non-food products, which have the potential to become livelihood activities of the Tau-buid. Nevertheless, they had problems on weeds, rats and birds, pest and diseases, drought, and wildfire. Hand weeding; use of "binsik"; crop rotation and diversification; water harvesting facility; and fire breaks were suggested solutions. Training and seminars to capacitate the Tau-buid deems necessary, such as in processing of products; which may be provided by concerned organizations. High value products out of non-timber products would offer high income.

Ganoderma lucidum is a rich source of unique compounds and has several properties including antifungals and contains different types of biologically active substances that are effective against different types of plant diseases. Hence, this study was conducted to assess the antimicrobial potential of G. lucidum extract. Ganoderma concentrations [5%, 10%, 15%, 20%, and 100% (pure Ganoderma extract)] were applied using the poison food technique. The different test pathogens were the following: Colletotrichum capsici, Colletotrichum gloeosporioides, Colletotrichum coccodes, Fusarium sp., Pestalotiopsis palmarum, and Alternaria solani. Results on the antimicrobial performances of Ganoderma lucidum extract against the test pathogens, the highest percentage inhibition was observed in A. solani (A₆) with 46.73%. On the other hand, the purified extract (100%) of G. lucidum recorded the highest percent growth inhibition against the different test pathogens with 68.68%. Based on the effect of treatment combinations on fungus growth inhibition after incubation, the purified extract (100%) of G. lucidum recorded the highest percent growth inhibition against, C. gloeosporioides with 100% and followed by A. solani with a comparable result of 94.40%. Based on the findings, Ganoderma extracts tested (5%, 10%, 15%; 20%, and 100%) varied in the ability and persistence of their antifungal effects against the test plant pathogenic fungi. The findings of this study stipulate evidence that pure extract (100%) of Ganoderma successfully inhibited the mycelia growth of some of the test pathogens (C. gloeosporioides, A. solani, and C. capsici) which has comparable results to the Positive control (Fungide-Daconil). The antifungal activity of the different concentrations of G. lucidum variedly suppressed the growth of the plant pathogenic fungi differently.

Poor soil health adversely affects farming and forestry sectors worldwide. Microbial fertilizers can improve the plant-soil continuum in degraded ecosystem. In this research, the soil microbiome, plant biomass and root-shoot ratio of 2 mo-old Bauhinia purpurea, transplanted on aseptic soil + sand mixture (1:1) upon inoculation with 5 g of AMF (MYKOCAP^®, coded as MCAP and MYKORICH^®, coded as MRICH), with or without NFB (Bio-N^TM, coded as Bio-N) amendment, were investigated. B. purpurea (Fabaceae), is an important reforestation and fodder species for livestock. The total plant biomass ranged from 18.90 g - 23.33 g, and highest in MRICH. Root-shoot ratio in Bio-N (0.58) was 23.4% higher than the Control. MCAP and Bio-N had increased sporulation and root colonization and NFB communities, respectively. Spore count can explain 32.9% change in primary roots biomass (p=0.013, r²=0.573), while root colonization can explain the 28.3% (p=0.023, r²=0.532), 47.9% (p=0.001, r²=0.692), 48.7% (p=0.001, r²=0.698), 26.5% (p=0.029, r²=0.514), and 39.4% (p=0.005, r²=0.628) change in total biomass, stem biomass, shoot biomass, primary roots biomass, and root biomass, respectively. Microbial fertilizers had increased the biomass and root-shoot ratio of B. purpurea, 90 days after inoculation. Microbial technology and multipurpose tree-based agroforestry are promising biological solutions for degraded agroforest ecosystems.