Group to interplant farms with teak

Dompoase (B/A), Jan. 24, GNA - Members of the Unity Afforestation Project at Nkoranza in Brong Ahafo have acquired more than 600 hectares of land inside the Aframsu-Brohoma Forest Reserve in the Ashanti Region to plant teak trees.

Mr. Isaac Hackim, Managing Director of the Project, at the weekend led an exercise during which some of the farmlands were demarcated to about 120 settler farmers from Dompoase, Nkubem and Nsunensa in the Nkoranza district.

The farmers would cultivate crops such as yams, maize, cassava, millet and vegetables on the farms whilst members of the Project would inter-crop them with teak tree seedlings.

Mr. Hackim advised the farmers to guard against bushfires in the forest and to halt group hunting.

He cautioned the farmers against the application of chemicals at areas where the teak trees had been planted. Mr. Hackim said the Association had nursed teak, acacia, cedella, odum, mahogany, oil palm and mango tree seedlings to be supplied to the forestry department for forestation projects in Brong Ahafo, Ashanti and Northern regions.

He appealed to the farmers to undertake good farming practices to protect the teak trees and all the economic trees in the forestlands. Settler farmers should also report illegal chain-saw operators to the security agencies.