Restoration of Philippine Native Forest by Smallholder Tree Farmers - Smallholder Tree Growing for Rural Development and Environmental Services - page 312

Practically no propagation problem was encountered in the nursery except for
very slow growth. This was observed in batikuling ( Litsea leytensis ), kuling baboi
( Dysoxylum altissimum ), malaruhat bundok ( Syzygium urophyllum .), and babay-
sakan (ulayan; Lithocarpus buddii ). These same species were consistently slow in
growth even when outplanted. Unlike fast-growing exotic trees like gmelina, acacia
and eucalyptus this growth habit makes many ITS less desirable for many tree
farmers desiring quick returns. Mix planting ITS with the fast growing exotic spe-
cies would provide a spectrum of tree age classes. Consequently harvesting regimes
will range from short-term to medium to long-term. Developing planting schemes
to mix ITS and exotics is an important knowledge gap that researchers need to
address. An ecological advantage of the mixed planting scheme is that it can simu-
late an uneven aged stand which has stratified canopy structure characteristic of
tropical rain forests. This canopy architecture optimizes the light intercepted at the
various levels and enhances soil erosion protection due to the combined efficiency
of the different canopy layers. Economically speaking, the scheme also insulates
the tree farmer from the rapidly changing and dynamic wood market and affords
him with flexibility in responding to fluctuating product demand and price
variations.
Light requirements of the tested species vary both in the nursery and after out-
planting. Many require full shade to partial shade in the nursery except for malaruhat.
Batikuling and kuling manok ( Aglaia luzoniensis ) can tolerate open conditions
when in the sapling stage. This is indicative that these species are mostly shade tol-
erant which is common to many species in the advance stages of succession.
Silvical information like these are vital when designing the planting mix for the
slow-growing ITS and fast growing exotics.
The two-year species survival performance is considered good if provided with
adequate maintenance, particularly weeding. Survival ranges from 60 to 90 percent
especially for potted seedlings. However, one farmer group used bareroot stocks
consequently decreasing survival rates to 40 to 50 percent. Rough handling particu-
larly in the difficult terrain of the land grants contributed to seedling shock that
decreased outplanting survival. No significant pests or disease problems were
encountered either in the nursery or field. A few leaf-eating insects were observed
but no serious threats exist. However, since the environment in which these ITS
were planted is a mixed secondary forest, it is possible that the presence of a good
balance between prey and predator has minimized the occurrence of epidemic-level
pest and disease problems. This has strengthened the niche importance for ITS in
enrichment plantings for rehabilitating degraded secondary forests. However, Nair
(2001) asserts that there is no existing data to support that ITS is not totally resistant
to pest outbreak, and an economic damage to ITS plantations is potentially possi-
ble. These vital information issues have to be considered when embarking in ITS
plantations that make the smallholder tree farm models attractive, avoiding the
extensive monoculture plantations common to many exotics.
The program was seriously limited by the availability of germplasm, particularly
from superior mother trees. The successive logging operations and the unabated
illegal logging activities have significantly decimated the number and distribution