Indigenous agroforestry in American Samoa

Agroforestry exists in American Samoa as a system where indigenous trees and natural vegetation used for food, fuelwood, crafts and medicine are incorporated with traditional staple crops and livestock on a set piece of land, usually a mountainous slope. Most agroforests are taro-based (Colocasia esculenta). While nutritional, cultural, social, economic and ecological benefits are realized from the agroforest, sufficient quantitative and qualitative documentation and widespread knowledge of the importance of agroforestry is lacking. Other problems include a shift toward monocropping, the land tenure system, illegal watershed intrusion, and the threat of pesticide misuse. To promote this highly sustainable and culturally important system, a holistic approach including detailed documentation, setting up of demonstration plots, and an active education program are suggested.