Forest Melioration and Pasture Management in the Caspian Region

Violation of nomadic forms of pasture use leads to vegetation degradation, periodic large-scale outbreaks of deflation and desertification, and transformation of the physicochemical properties of sandy soils in the arid zone. Practice has shown that an effective means of restoring their production potential is the creation of multi-tiered vegetation cover—forest and pasture lands. The purpose of this study is to assess the current state, feed productivity, attractiveness, and sustainability of forest pastures and to develop proposals for their optimization. This research was carried out through a comprehensive study of natural objects on temporary trial plots using standard methods of agroforestry, geobotanical and soil research, and statistical data processing. It has been established that on the thick blown sands of the Nogai steppe in forest pastures with a tree layer of Robinia pseudoacacia and Ulmus pumila, the forage yield increases to 2–3 t/ha (in terms of hay) and, depending on the seasons of the year, is 1.5–3.5 times higher than that on natural pastures. On the fine sands of the Black Lands, there are forest pastures formed by plantings of Krascheninnikovia ceratoides and Calligonum aphyllum. At the age of 30–40 years, they produce 1.5–3 t/ha of dry food, which is 1.4–2 times higher than in the surrounding steppe. On weakly and unwinnowed sands of the Astrakhan Trans-Volga region, in 20- to 60-year-old forest–pastures with protective fodder plantings of Haloxylon aphyllum, C. aphyllum, and K. ceratoides, the consumed mass of shrubs is 0.1–4 t/ha, while the grass stand is 0.3–1 t/ha, which is 20% more than in the open steppe. Pastures with tree and shrub layers attract animals and are more resistant to deflation. The functional durability of silvopastures depends on the technology of their creation, maintenance, and operation regime. The most important measures are fire protection and rationing of the pasture load.