Collaboration for Agriculture & Rural Development: Field evaluation and advanced vegetative mass-propagation technology for scaling up high-value plantations of Pinus caribaea and related hybrids in Vietnam - Milestone 9 " pot

Page 1 of 6 Ministry of Agriculture & Rural Development Collaboration for Agriculture & Rural Development Project 033/05 VIE Field evaluation and advanced vegetative mass-propagation

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Ministry of Agriculture & Rural Development

Collaboration for Agriculture & Rural Development

Project 033/05 VIE

Field evaluation and advanced vegetative mass-propagation technology for scaling

up high-value plantations of Pinus caribaea and related hybrids in Vietnam

Milestone 9:

Outputs 3.1 & 3.2: Large scale demonstration and community and individual

farmer managed sites of Pinus caribaea

Report Title:

Demonstration scale plantings of Pinus caribaea in Vietnam

March 2008

1.0 INTRODUCTION

CARD Project 033/VIE seeks to review existing experience with and performance of several tropical conifer species in Vietnam, particularly Caribbean Pine, and to establish further trials of improved genetic material, including hybrids

The project will also provide capacity building for forest research institutions relating to Pinus

tree improvement and mass propagation systems via training in Queensland and Vietnam, development of small-scale hedge and nursery infrastructure, and a study tour to Australia, involving forest managers and researchers

Finally, the project will build awareness among large and small-scale forest growers including ethnic minorities, through the establishment of collaborative demonstration plantings in priority

regions for Pinus plantation expansion in Vietnam, supported by appropriate training

Milestone 8 Report provides a summary of existing Pinus trials throughout Vietnam and highlights the excellent potential of Pinus caribaea in most regions

Milestone 4 Report provides information regarding the establishment of several new

experimental scale trials of various Pinus taxa including Pinus caribaea and related hybrids

This Milestone 9 Report relates to Outputs 3.1 and 3.2 of the Project covering the establishment

of demonstration scale plantings of Pinus caribaea with commercial forest growers and

community and individual farmers

2.0 SELECTION OF DEMONSTRATION SITES

The selection of sites for demonstration sites is largely dependent on the level of co-operation, in-kind resources and long-term commitment to be provided by participating landholders

During the Project period, demonstration sites have been planted at the following sites:

• Lac Duong, Lam Dong Province

• Dak P’Lao, Dak Nong Province

• Van Diem, Nam Dan, Nghe An Province

• Cam Lo, Dong Ha, Quang Tri Province

The latter two sites were planted adjacent to genetic trials (Refer Milestone 4 Report)

Other potential sites discussed with project partners included Dak To (Kon Tum Province) and Ngoc Lac (Thanh Hoa Province), however plant shortages and difficulties in negotiating short and long-term in-kind resources prevented these sites being established In the longer term, beyond the life of this Project, it is hoped that further demonstration trials will be established using cuttings becoming available from the pilot nurseries

The following sections provide an overview of the four sites planted to date

3.0 FOREST COMPANY TRIAL, LAM DONG PROVINCE

Pinus kesiya occurs naturally at high elevations (above around 900m) throughout the Central

Highlands Region of Vietnam For example it is the dominant pine in natural stands that are

visible from the main range road up to Dalat, the capital of Lam Dong Province (Refer A1 & A2

in Attachment A) The forests near Dalat, and other high quality stands of P kesiya, are

protected within Lam Dong Province for watershed protection and conservation purposes In

addition to native forest areas, there are extensive P kesiya plantations throughout Lam Dong

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Province and other Central Highland Provinces, although the growth and form of these

plantations is inferior to that observed in natural stands (A3 & A4) Pinus kesiya from both

natural forest and plantation sources is an important source of building timber (A5 – A8)

Unfortunately, the rapid expansion of coffee plantations in recent years has resulted in the

clearing of both natural and plantation forests of P kesiya (A9 & A10)

In parts of Lam Dong Province, management responsibility for large areas of Pinus kesiya

natural forest is transferring from the Government of Vietnam (Forestry Department) to private landholders and companies via the issue of long-term leases Prior to the issue of long-term leases, an inventory of the forest (and other) resources within a particular lease area is conducted

to form the basis of a long-term management plan For example, a long-term management plan, ratified as part of the lease agreement, might include the following land use categories:

• High quality natural forest –for watershed protection and conservation (no logging)

• Medium quality forest – for periodic timber harvest and enrichment planting

• Degraded forest and grassland – to be re-planted with high-yielding plantation species

• Other cleared areas – for cattle grazing

• Specific sites – for eco-tourism or other retail opportunities

Staff from the Lam Dong Forest Research Centre are involved in the development of many such management plans for companies seeking long-term leases over forested areas in Lam Dong Province Against this background, it was decided that a demonstration planting based on one of the new long-term company lease areas would serve as a useful demonstration site for other companies seeking to invest in the region Details of the lease and demonstration planting are

outlined in Table 1 and illustrated in images A11 to A23

Table 1: Forest lease area and associated pine demonstration planting

Item Description

District &

Province

Lac Duong, Lam Dong Province Area: 1,513 km2

Population density: 16 persons / km2

Location Approximately 45 minute drive north-east of Dalat on route 417 ( joins

new highway to Nha Trang)

Adjacent

communes and

villages

Da Chais and Da Nhim Communes The adjoining Dong Mang village, part of the Da Chais commune, supports 23 ethnic minority families with a total population of 226 people

Lease holder Paradise Company (Công Ty TNHH Tiên Thai)

Latitude 12° 10’ 00’’N (approximate)

Lease term 50 years (from 2007)

Longitude 108° 28’00’’E (approximate)

Elevation (m) 1,500

Climate 1,896 mm annual rainfall (rainy season May – October)

Average annual temperature : 18° C Average annual humidity: 85%

Soil Deep, red, well-drained, ferralitic

Demonstration

pine area

Species: Pinus caribaea var hondurensis (PCH) – non select –

Queensland

Pinus kesiya

Area: Approximately 10 ha Date planted: October 2007 Spacing: Approximately 3m x 3m (1,111 trees per hectare)

4.0 SMALL SCALE COMMUNITY AND INDIVIDUAL FARMER TRIALS

A small ethnic minority village near Dak PLao was identified during the initial Project planning visit as a potentially suitable site to establish some pine demonstration trials with the local community and individual farmers

Dak PLao is located in Dak Nong District within Dak Nong Province (previously part of Dak Lak Province) just over the border from Lam Dong Province and about 5 km north of the Highway 28 border bridge1 on the Da Dang River The District extends over 2,131 km2 and supports a low density population averaging only 29 persons/ km2

The community comprises a mix of indigenous ethnic minority people as well as ethnic minority families from Vietnam’s northern mountainous areas that have recently re-settled in the area

(Images B1 to B4) Staff from the Lam Dong Forest Research Centre are working closely with

these groups as part of a broader community forestry project based on the surrounding forest

Image B5/5a is a map/legend showing the different forest types and planned uses for the Project

Forest The forest, totalling approximately 3,000 hectares, includes primary rainforest and pine

forest, secondary forest, bamboo forest and degraded regrowth and grasslands (B6 – B9)

A three year old PCH planting near the Dak PLao township is showing impressive growth (B10

& B11) and has provided encouragement for further planting of this pine in the local area In

December 2007 the CARD Project team inspected a recently planted Pinus caribaea var hondurensis (PCH) demonstration trial on a previously cleared, very steep slope near the village

(B12 – B14) Survival appeared quite good although follow up manual weed control will be

required to promote good early growth

As part of the community forest project, a new forest station and forest nursery is being

constructed on the edge of the Project Forest (B15 – B17) Once completed, it is the intention of

the local managers to trial some of the nursery techniques developed as part of this CARD

Project and to encourage the broader scale planting of Pinus caribaea var hondurensis on steep

degraded areas within the Project Forest Area in conjunction with the local community and individual farmers

5.0 DEMONSTRATION PLANTINGS ADJACENT TO GENETIC TRIALS

As mentioned earlier, two additional demonstration sites have recently been planted in

conjunction with structured genetic trials The genetic trials will enable the provision of

statistically rigorous data while the demonstration plantings will enable the performance of several species and hybrids to be assessed in larger block plantings Table 2 provides summary information regarding the two demonstration plantings Attachments C and D are layout maps for the site in Nghe An and Quang Tri Province respectively The primary commercial pine

grown in these areas is Pinus merkussii

1

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Table 2: Summary details for demonstration plantings in Nghe An and Quang Tri Provinces

Nghe An Province site Quang Tri Province site

Local management Management Board of Nam

Dan Forest Protected Areas

Research Centre for North Central Vietnam

Latitude (approximate) 18° 03’ 13’’N 16° 48’ 39’’N

Longitude (approximate) 105° 09’ 09’’E 107° 00’ 17’’E

Site preparation Clear vegetation, remove stumps and plough

manure + 100g NPK)/tree

200g NPK/tree

Species in demonstration pine

trial

P merkussii

PCH (Dai Lai) PCH (Queensland) PEE x PCH F2 hybrid (Qld)

P merkussii P.massoniana

PCH (Dai Lai) PCH (Queensland) PEE x PCH F2 hybrid (Qld) PCH x PCB (Qld)

PCH x PCC (Qld)

Deleted: Annual Rainfall

Deleted: ¶

[1]

6.0 CONTACTS

Project Management, Vietnam Project Management, Australia

Mr Phi Hong Hai

Deputy Director

Research Centre for Forest Tree Improvement

Dong Ngac, Tu Liem, Ha Noi

Phi.hong.hai@fsiv.org.vn

Ph: 84 (0) 4 8389 813

Fax 84 (0) 4 836 2280

Mr Ian Last

Manager, Plantation Development and Innovation

Forestry Plantations Queensland

P O Box 1339,GYMPIE, Queensland, 4570

Ian.last@fpq.qld.gov.au

Ph: 61 (0) 754 820 891 Fax: 61 (0) 7 5482 3430

Demonstration Sites

“Paradise” & Dak PLao, Lam Dong Province

Mr Hua Vinh Tung

Director

Lam Dong Forest Research Centre

9 Hung Vuong, Dalat, LAM DONG

Ph: 063 822 131 Fax: 063 829 852

Van Dien, Nam Dan, Nghe An Province

Management Board of Nam Dan Forest Protected Areas

Mr Le Dinh Minh

Tel: 0380 822 106

Cam Lo, Dong Ha, Quang Tri Province

Research Centre for North Central Vietnam

Mr Hoang Minh Tam

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Annual Rainfall