CONSERVATION OF TAIWANIA CRYPTOMERIODES THROUGH REPLANTING AND PROMOTION AS A NATIONAL REFORESTATION SPECIES IN VIETNAM

Working with the Centre for Plant Conservation, our long term partners in Vietnam, we are working to conserve one of the most magnificent trees in the world, Taiwania cryptomeriodes. Growing to 80m tall and 3m across this giant of the tree world is threatened by logging and habitat loss. This project is establishing village nurseries to grow the species and working to make the tree an official government reforestation species.

FURTHER INFORMATION

Taiwania cryptomerioides, (Vietnamese name, “Bách tán đài loan kín”) is categorised as Vulnerable by the IUCN and considered Critically Endangered within Vietnam. Following a successful Global Trees Campaign project to restore five threatened conifer species we are now working with CPC on Taiwania, to restore and protect wild populations.

The objectives of the project are:

• To get Taiwania adopted as an official government reforestation species


• To develop the capacity of local communities at the sites of the wild population of Taiwania to manage the wild trees and sustainably produce seedlings to generate income.


• To improve the status of Taiwania through planting
  
  
• To increase information on threatened trees or species of interest within the project area.


• To increase information on local and traditional uses of trees in the project area

The project is working to establish village tree nurseries in three villages and is training community members in seed collection, nursery management and seedling production. Information about the species is being gathered, which will be submitted to the government to allow Taiwania to be adopted as an official reforestation species

During the course of the project, local people will also be asked about their traditional uses of trees, and this information will be recorded and compiled to increase knowledge about local uses and values of trees.

FFI has been involved in the conservation of conifers and conifer forests in Vietnam for many years, and was one of the authors of a multi-institutional report Vietnam Conifers Conservation Status Review 2004 (Hiep et al. 2004). Since this seminal publication, FFI has been working to implement some of the recommendations it contained, with the following projects:

Initiating conservation of threatened Vietnamese cypress trees (2005-2006)

Conservation of five priority threatened conifer species in Vietnam (2007 - 2009)

We are currently supporting further conifer restoration work through our Conservation Gifts at Tree2MyDoor.com - click for more information and to plant a conifer tree as a gift.

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