Conocimiento local sobre la quema en sistemas silvopastoriles de El Petén, Guatemala

Farmers’ knowledge regarding the use of fire as a pasture management tool was explored in four municipalities in El Peten, Guatemala. Emphasis was placed on farmers’ knowledge about trees and most commonly grown pastures and their response to burning. The reasons for using fire, time of the year and frequency of burning, and the factors that influence decision making were also collected to find out differences between types of producers and operational context in which they work. Cluster analysis applying the Ward method was conducted to determine farmers’ typologies using socioeconomic variables. Analysis of variance and Duncan test (α = 0.05) were run for quantitative variables, and the Chi-square (χ2) test for qualitative variables. Three types of livestock farmers were identified with significant differences in terms of organizational level, educational level and land tenure: large farmers (655 ha and 477 head of cattle), medium-size farmers (154 ha and 125 head), and small farmers (80 ha and 46 head). Knowledge about species resistance to fire, pasture characteristics, pasture and cattle management, advantages and disadvantages to burning, as well as on fire as a management tool (time of the year when it is applied, frequency, etc.) correspond to local practice and to biophysical conditions of soils on farms. Our results suggest that the use of fire as a management strategy depends on both the production system and the surrounding context.