Agroforestry Tree Species: Acacia tortilis, Biology, Importance, Agroforestry Production, and Biotechnology Application

Trees, especially indigenous species play a key role in the improvement or maintenance of soil fertility, and the overall ecosystem functioning. Trees have long been utilized in various ways including in agricultural production to optimize land productivity. Acacia tortilis is one of the trees that play a critical role in arid and semi-arid environments and is widely distributed in Africa and the Middle East. A. tortilis provides numerous benefits in the form of products e.g., timber, fuel wood, fodder, food, and gum, services, for example, improvement of soil health, cultural benefits, and shade, and medicinal properties. It is highly valued among dwellers of arid and semi-arid regions due to its ability to tolerate extreme environmental conditions such as drought, salinity, drifting of sand dunes, and management practices like cutting and browsing. The biology, origin, distribution, ecology, morphology, and growth management of A. tortilis and its mutual associations with other organisms such as arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi and nitrogen-fixing bacteria, along with biotechnological studies carried out in the species, has been outlined in the chapter.