Social and Behavioral Sciences Commons^™

Oberlin's Experimental Hazelnut Orchard: Exploring Woody Agriculture's Potential For Climate Change Mitigation And Food System Resilience, Naomi Fireman

Honors Papers

Mitigating and adapting to climate change and transitioning to more sustainable agricultural methods to feed a growing human population are fundamental challenges today. Woody agriculture holds potential for addressing both through food production and carbon sequestration. To help assess this potential, in 2011, Oberlin College planted an experimental orchard made up of 70 hybrid hazelnut trees treated with three levels of fertilization. I asked the questions: How does annual allocation of carbon to different tissues change over time as hybrid hazels mature? How much carbon can this system store, where is it stored, and how does this change over time? …