Richness and the similarity of Leguminosae in coffee agroforestry systems in Araponga, Minas Gerais

Abstract

The floristic composition of agroforestry systems can be quite diverse and stratified, mainly due to the presence of trees and shrubs intercropped with agricultural crops. The aim of this study was to make an inventory of the richness and the similarity of Leguminosae in seven coffee Agroforestry Systems in Araponga, Minas Gerais. The objective was to understand the richness and the similarity of Leguminosae species in seven Agroforestry Systems (AFS) coffee in Araponga, Minas Gerais. Botanical material was collected monthly from August 2005 to September 2006, pressed, herborized, identified and stored in the VIC Herbarium. Similarity of floristic composition present in the agroforestry systems was evaluated with a cluster analysis dendrogram. The family Leguminosae were represented by 61 species and 39 genera. Trees (28 species) and subshrubs (18 species) were the main habits found. Fifty-four of the species found are native to Brazil and 51 to the Atlantic Forest. Twenty-eight species showed nodulation, which is considered important for the agroforestry systems. The systems showed low floristic similarity, with the majority of Sorensen ́s indexes between 0.2 and 0.3. This indicates high heterogeneity in the floristic composition of each agroforestry system, which is a consequence of the species selection based on popular knowledge and preference of the individual farmers, and the availability of genetic material in each property.