As one of the households supported by the City Union of Science and Technology Associations and the Green Vietnam Biodiversity Conservation Center with more than 1,000 black star trees to plant on an area of ​​more than 1 hectare, Mr. Thieu Song (Dong Lam village) said that after 6 months of planting and caring, most of the seedlings grew steadily with an average height of 2-3m.

To help the trees grow well, every month he spends a few days clearing the ground, clearing weeds, checking for pests and diseases and fertilizing regularly. In parallel with planting black star trees, he sets aside 1.5 hectares of the forest edge to maintain acacia planting to stabilize the family economy. He said that while waiting for the black star trees to grow, his family still maintains income from acacia to cover living expenses and reinvest in the large timber forest. Combining perennial and short-term planting helps him ensure his immediate livelihood while aiming for the long-term goal of sustainable forest development.

“Growing acacia trees only takes 4-5 years to harvest, growing large trees takes 15-20 years, or even longer. Therefore, families need to implement short-term plans to take care of food and clothing, and long-term plans to nourish the land and protect the forest. Protecting the forest means protecting the livelihood of future generations,” Mr. Song shared.

Along with Mr. Song, many other farming households in Dong Lam and Phu Tuc villages have boldly converted from several sao to several hectares of land growing acacia to growing black star, red sưa, flower lat, giang huong and green lim. Mr. Tran Van Viet (Phu Tuc village) said that his family has 4 hectares of land growing acacia waiting for harvest. From 2024, through the mobilization of the locality, he is planning to convert part of the area from acacia to growing fruit trees and large timber trees to focus on economic development under the forest canopy.

Similarly, Mr. Huynh Tan Phap, Executive Director of Toom Sara Village (Phu Tuc hamlet) said that the unit is actively mobilizing people to participate in the project "Forest, breathe". Accordingly, starting from March, Toom Sara Village will dedicate 93% of the forest land (about 70 hectares) to planting acacia trees and some native trees to create a landscape and sustainable livelihood for the Co Tu community.

Mr. Phap believes that replacing acacia trees with large timber trees is a choice that is important for the environment and local culture. As someone who has been attached to the Co Tu community in Phu Tuc village for many years, he understands the changes in lifestyle, livelihood and relationship between people and forests. According to him, the Co Tu people used to live in harmony with nature, considering the forest as their common home, the source of life. However, when natural forests are narrowed and forest trees are replaced by short-term acacia fields, that sacred relationship gradually fades away. “If we want the community to return to preserving the forest, we must first help people see the benefits of preserving the forest. Planting large timber trees is a way to restore the value of the forest, while also creating a stable long-term income,” Mr. Phap affirmed.

After 3 years of implementing the large timber tree planting model, the People's Committee of Hoa Phu commune has mobilized people to replace the trees on an area of ​​over 200 hectares. Mr. Nguyen Hai Cuong, Vice Chairman of the People's Committee of Hoa Phu commune, said that they are continuing to mobilize people to cooperate in planting fruit trees and large timber trees to replace production forests, as well as combining livestock farming under the forest canopy to develop the economy. To create consensus, the locality regularly coordinates with units to provide technical support, tree varieties, and training in care skills for people, while reviewing suitable land funds to expand the area of ​​large timber forest planting in a planned direction.

Currently, the commune has identified large-scale timber plantation as a long-term orientation associated with the goal of protecting the environment, preserving water resources, preventing erosion and landslides, and increasing sustainable income for the people. Along with that, the locality continues to guide the community to access the carbon credit market, exploit forest environmental services to bring stable income from planting and preserving forests in the future.

HUYNH LE

Source: https://baodanang.vn/xa-hoi/202504/nguoi-dan-xa-hoa-phu-no-luc-trong-cay-go-lon-4004593/