FACT Net News: Number 3 , September 1999
FACT Net closes down
As announced in the mailing in June, FACT Net will close down at the end of 1999. This is the last mailing of FACT Net News and Fact Sheets. Professional level participants will receive Forest, Farm, and Community Tree Research Reports (FACTRR), Volume 4, 1999 early next year. Participants that have paid annual fees in U.S. dollars beyond 1999 may request a cash refund, or an equal value of FACT Net publications, including mailing costs. Refunds will be made at the end of this year.
Why are we closing?
FACT Net is closing mainly because of a shortage of funds to cover general operating costs. Over 50 percent of our network participants are in non-industrialized countries and receive a waiver of participant fees. Each year we also mail hundreds of publications free of charge to individuals, organizations and institutions that do not have access to U.S. currency, or that can not afford the cost. We have accomplished our mission of providing technical assistance to those that need it most. However, our success has placed too much pressure on our limited financial resources, our ability to raise funds, and our ability to efficiently perform the many administrative tasks required for maintaining a large network.
What have we accomplished?
When reviewing the successes of a network that has operated for almost 20 years it is hard to mention everything in such a small space. There are a couple of accomplishments that stand out. The Nitrogen Fixing Tree Association (NFTA) operated for 15 years and played a major role in increasing awareness and use of nitrogen fixing trees (NFTs). NFTA’s Cooperative Planting Program helped hundreds of people worldwide in selecting and testing NFTs for local environments and uses. The valuable information generated from this program was shared with others through NFTA’s regular publications. NFTA set a standard for producing practical publications such as NFT Highlights, Nitrogen Fixing Tree Research Reports (NFTRR), Leucaena Research Reports (LRR), proceedings volumes, field manuals and a training curriculum. These formats have been widely copied.
NFTA became the Forest, Farm, and Community Tree Network (FACT Net) in 1996 and continued the NFTA tradition of producing and distributing scientific information in practical formats. This included Fact Sheets, two-page summaries of multipurpose tree species and their uses. FACT Sheets and NFT Highlights are available in at least seven languages and
have been distributed to thousands of people worldwide.
NFTA and FACT Net co-sponsored 20 workshops on NFT species or NFT-related topics, and developed a unique model for producing and distributing workshop information. In addition to proceedings volumes, NFTA and FACT Net produced practical field manuals that included experiences and observations of scientists and field practitioners. Producing a proceedings volume and practical field manual from each workshop made information on nitrogen fixing trees available to a much wider audience.
Who has been involved?
John Musser and Jim Brewbaker started NFTA in 1981 and many people have worked for or collaborated with the network since then. They include David Challinor, Bill Hueg, Bill Bentley, Jeff Burley, Ta-Wei Hu, Dale Withington, Ken MacDicken, Rick Van den Beldt, Narong Chomchalow, Jim Chamberlain, Erin Moore, Nancy Glover, Bill Macklin, Karl Dalla Rosa, Charles Sorensson,
Y.S. Huang, Y.J. Yuang, Bertha Boom, Sidney Westley, Jim Roshetko, Carol Stoney, Donna Willson, Sonja Bowden, and Doris Cook, to name a few. A special thanks to Dale Evans, who has edited the Research Reports since 1992. His last issue will be FACTRR Volume 4.
A very special thanks the Council of Agriculture, Taiwan and Taiwan Forestry Research Institute for printing and mailing LRR, NFTRR, FACTRR and field manuals for 19 years. Thanks to Dr. Fuh-Jiunn Pan and Hsiang-Hua Wang for coordinating the production and distribution of the reports for the last two years.
And last, but not least, a special thanks to all the network participants and others that authored fact sheets, contributed articles for the Research Reports and newsletter, and made financial contributions to keep the network going.
Where do we go from here?
Winrock’s Forestry and Natural Resources Management Program will maintain the FACT Net web site as a resource for information on multipurpose trees. Winrock will continue to sell FACT Net publications in stock and may occasionally publish and distribute workshop proceedings volumes and other special publications. Winrock will maintain the FACT Net mailing list for mailing publications in the future. It has been a pleasure serving the network over the last eight years and I hope that I can serve you again in the near future.
Mark H. Powell, FACT Net Coordinator
Clarification about Calliandra
Dr. Freerk Wiersum of the Sub-department of Forestry, Wageningen Agricultural University, the Netherlands writes to amend some points covered in the recent fact sheet on Calliandra calothyrsus (99-02). Calliandra was not introduced to Indonesia as a shade tree, but rather as a possible replacement of Leucaena as a intercropping species in teak plantations. This is clearly described in the article by Verhoef (1941) in Tectona 34:711-736. This introduction consisted of only two seedlots, and thus all Indonesian plantings originating from these plantations have a narrow genetic base. Dr. Wiersum adds that the Oxford Forestry Institute has conducted extensive research on the origin of Calliandra and has found major differences in
provenances. For more information on this species readers are directed to the following publications.
Evans, D.O. (ed). 1996. International Workshop on the Genus Calliandra. FACTRR (Special Report). FACT Net, Winrock International, Morrilton, Arkansas. 268 p.
Powell, M.H. (ed) 1997. Calliandra calothyrsus production and use: a field manual. FACT Net, Winrock International, Morrilton, Arkansas. 62 p.
Wiersum, K.F. 1997. Calliandra calothyrsus Meissn. In: Plant Resources of South-East Asia (PROSEA), Volume 11, Auxiliary plants. PROSEA, Bogor, Indonesia. p.79-83.
Identification of priority species for biodiversity and tree planting
Through a series of four regional workshop across Thailand the DANIDA-funded Forest Genetic Resources Conservation and Management Project (FORGENMAP) has identified priority species in 5 categories: (1) industrial use (energ, pulp, flooring, furniture & veneer, timber); (2) local wood use (fuel, tools, handicraft, construction, agroforests); (3) non-wood use (fruit,
fodder, medicinal, ornamental, amenity); (4) soil & water conservation; and (5) biodiversity conservation. The project has identified 458 species, many of which occur in more than one of the 5 categories and across multiple regions. Of the total, 188 species have not yet been identified by their scientific name, indicating a strong desire for indigenous species. The relative importance and demand for the species was determined through a seedling request exercise.
The 151 participants at the workshops included smallholder farmers; private land owners; commercial nurseries; enterprises engaged in tree planting for industrial purposes; non-government organizations associated with tree farming or conservation activities; and government agencies, universities and other major independent organizations concerned with forestry and conservation. An article summarizing data generated by the workshops will be published in the next FACTRR. Additional information and a summary of the workshop results are available from the project office.
Dr. Anders Pedersen
FORGENMAP
Silviculture Research Center 1
Huay Kaew
Chiang Mai 50200 THAILAND
Fax: 66-053-222472;
Email: anders@cm.ksc.co.th
Errata
Forest, Farm, and Community Tree Research Reports (FACTRR), volume3 (1998).
On page 19 in ‘Table 3. Subsequent total dry matter (DM) yield’ the value for 16 weeks DM (kg/m/yr) column for Bauhinia monandra should read 21.6.
Domestication of Trees in Southeast Asia (FACTRR, Special Issue 1999).
On page 118 in ‘Table 1. Some potentially useful local tree species by agroecological zone’ Erythrina urophylla should be added under the ‘Humid area’ column.
On page 119, in ‘Table 2. Valuable local species based on their usein traditional rural communities in Nusa Tenggara Timur’ under ‘Living fence’ column the last species should be Erythrina urophylla (notEucalyptus urophylla).
On page 124, in ‘Table 3. Notes on some local species including ease of seed collection’ comments for Cieba petandra should read ‘Easy to grow without special treatment’ (not species treatment). Comments under Eucalyptus alba should read ‘Good fuelwood’ (not Good timber).
On page 145 in ‘Table 3. Germplasm and tree information sources’ theseventh item in the first column should read Forests 13% (not Pests 13%).