Mitigation option on converted forest zone through agroforestry system for improving the hydrological function of Upper Singkil Watershed

The aimed of this study was to identify the mitigation option for improving the converted forest zone function on Upper Singkil Watershed through agroforestry system. Mitigation option focus on the preferences of community in the selection of the agroforestry system. Dryland mixture farming of shrubs was the dominant land use of the forest zone. Agroforestry is one of the mitigation options to restore the forest hydrological function of the upper watershed and also improve the community's access to the forest zone legally. There are two types of agroforestry system in Upper Singkil Watershed, which is simple agroforestry and complex agroforestry. The community tends to choose the simple agroforestry system due to economic reason and the ease of management. The crops preference by the community were Musa paradisiaca, Coffea arabica, Manihot esculenta, Citrus sinensis, Cacao Theobroma, Zea mays, Oryza sativa, and Saccharum officinarum. The trees preference by the community were Durio zibethinus, Archidendron pauciflorum, Parkia speciosa, Cinnamomum verum, and Arenga pinnata. Soil and water conservation techniques applied by the community are still simple vegetative techniques due to the cost of applying soil and water conservation techniques reason. The soil water conservation knowledge and skills application techniques of the community need to be improved.