Swidden agriculture as a production system has been practiced for thousands of years, based on ecological processes of forest ecosystems. While this cultivation system has often been framed as contributing to environmental degradation, it can also be argued to be compatible with sustainable agricultural practices. Its sustainability strongly depends on the length of the recovery period, the period of secondary forest succession, after swidden agriculture. In this study we focused on soil fertility maintenance and recovery during secondary succession after swidden agriculture, compared to old-growth forests. Smallholders practiced a moderate form of swidden agriculture, abandoned the production field after one or two production cycles, and returned to the field after 10–15 years. Sampling took place in two traditional communities situated in the southeast portion of the Atlantic Rainforest at São Paulo state, Brazil. Soil samples were collected from forest fragments belonging to seven different Caiçara families (descendants from Amerindians, African Brazilian and European colonizers). Our chronosequence spanned a period of sixty years, while the old-growth forests were 100 years old. In all 28 sites were sampled, of which 19 were from ombrophilous forests on clay and 9 from restinga vegetation on sandy soil. Soils were analyzed for texture, macro- and micronutrient availability, bulk density, pH and nitrogen and carbon stocks. Linear regression, with clay content and fallow period as main factors, showed that successional age of the forest stand had only a significant effect on pH and Mn. Clay content of the soil influenced availability of nutrient bases and the CEC. Other soil properties, including stocks of carbon and nitrogen were not influenced by fallow period. Our data indicate that swidden agriculture might not lose key soil nutrients over time and hence can be considered an ecologically sustainable system in the region, challenging the negative perception of swidden agriculture.

基于森林生态系统的生态过程，作为农业生产系统的轮作农业已经实践了数千年。尽管这种耕作系统通常被认为是造成环境退化的原因，但也可以说它与可持续农业实践相适应。其可持续性在很大程度上取决于恢复期的长短，即农业耕种后的次生森林演替期。在这项研究中，与老龄林相比，我们侧重于轮作农业后次生演替期间的土壤肥力维持和恢复。小农实行适度的轮作农业，在一到两个生产周期后放弃生产田地，并在10-15年后返回田地。采样是在位于巴西圣保罗州大西洋雨林东南部的两个传统社区中进行的。从七个不同的森林碎片中收集土壤样品Caiçara家庭（美洲印第安人，非洲巴西和欧洲殖民者的后裔）。我们的时间序列跨度为60年，而古老的森林已有100年的历史。在所有28个地点取样，其中19个来自黏土上的亲雨林，9个来自restasta。沙质土壤上的植被。分析了土壤的质地，大量和微量养分的利用率，堆积密度，pH值以及氮和碳储量。以黏土含量和休耕期为主要因素的线性回归表明，林分演替年龄对pH和Mn的影响很小。土壤中的粘土含量影响营养基础和CEC的利用率。其他土壤性质，包括碳和氮的存量不受休耕期的影响。我们的数据表明，水耕农业可能不会随时间流失重要的土壤养分，因此可以被认为是该地区的生态可持续系统，挑战了对水耕农业的负面认识。