Long rotation period of trees and complex trading procedures of wood, are major impediments in spread of agroforestry. Thus, alternative for providing early return to farmers along with long term benefits of raising trees on their farmlands are necessary. Generally, ~ 25% of the trees can be used as timber while the other parts viz. bark, leaves, roots, branches etc. have limited use and are often burnt. In process, leakage of C sequestration potential of trees is reduced. But, tree twigs and leaves can be the potential source of bioactive compounds or secondary metabolites especially in arid region. Vegetation in arid regions possesses very special and unique chemicals which help them to adapt to prevailing harsh conditions. Water stress in these vegetation leads to production of high quantity of reactive oxygen species (ROS) which through a series of pathways eventually leads to higher production of certain special secondary compounds. These compounds, in nature improve defense mechanism of trees, but also have immense pharmaceutical, food, cosmeceutical, nutraceutical and agrochemicals value. They are locally used as folklore medicine but their commercial exploitation can provide short term benefits to farmers. Also, unlike bole, which can be exploited only once, these benefits from trees can be exploited many times during their growing period. Therefore, in this article research work on important secondary metabolites produced by major agroforestry systems of arid region of India has been reviewed along with their industrial applications.

树木的轮换期长和木材交易程序复杂，是农林业传播的主要障碍。因此，有必要采取其他措施为农民提供早日回报以及在其农田上种树的长期利益。通常，大约25％的树木可以用作木材，而其他部分也可以用作木材。树皮，树叶，根，树枝等用途有限，经常被烧毁。在此过程中，减少了树木的C螯合潜力的泄漏。但是，树枝和树叶可能是生物活性化合物或次生代谢产物的潜在来源，特别是在干旱地区。干旱地区的植被拥有非常特殊和独特的化学物质，可帮助他们适应当前的严酷条件。这些植被中的水分胁迫导致大量活性氧（ROS）的产生，而活性氧通过一系列途径最终导致某些特殊二级化合物的更高产量。这些化合物本质上改善了树木的防御机制，但也具有巨大的制药，食品，药妆，营养保健品和农药的价值。它们在当地被用作民俗医学，但其商业开发可以为农民带来短期利益。同样，与胆汁只能被利用一次的情况不同，树木的这些好处在它们的生长期可以被多次利用。因此，本文对印度干旱地区主要农林业系统产生的重要次生代谢产物的研究及其工业应用进行了综述。