Rare Local Trees get a Good Home: Bogor, West Java

By Barrie | November 16th, 2007 | No Comments

The Indonesian National Park Foundation together with Cibodas National Park has designated a plot of land in Cibodas for different species of trees representing areas of Jakarta. The foundation’s researcher, Holif Imamudin, who is also the former director of Bogor National Park, said the planned park was part of a conservation effort to protect trees already considered rare. The park now has 1,500 seedlings comprising 22 different tree species.

The tree specie already collected by the foundation include Menteng (Baccaurea recemosa), Cempaka Putih (Michelia alba), Gambir (Uncaria gambir), Cendana or sandalwood (Santalum), Rambutan, edible Gadung tuber, Kelapa Gading (Cocos capitata), Sirih or piper betel (Piperaceae), Durian tree, Duku or lanseh tree (Lansium domesticum Corr), Kemang (Mangifera caecea), Gandaria (Bouea macrophylla Griffith), Kepuh and Pinang or betel nut tree.

“It’s really not an easy job because most of the trees are now hard to find,” Holif said.

The cendana tree, for instance, must be cultivated from a mother tree, which is hard to find, he said.

“But we eventually got the seedlings from a resident of Jakarta who voluntarily supplied us (with the tree seedlings).”

The Kepuh seedlings currently growing at Cibodas Park did not grow like their mother trees due a difference in climate and humidity.

Holif said cooperation with Cibodas Park would continue so trees from other areas could also be grown there.

Holif said the program was aimed at investing in conservation of nature for future generations.

Theresia Sufa