TITLE:
Seedlings Growth Evaluation of Three NTFP Species in Community Nurseries for the Rehabilitation of Degraded Areas in the Periphery of the Douala-Edéa National Park
AUTHORS:
Jean Charbell Mbega, Hyacinthe Angoni, Ruth Laure Nnanga Mebenga, Gordon Ajonina, Coleen Mumbang
KEYWORDS:
Douala-Edea National Park, NTFP, Domestication, Wildings, Biometry, Growth Rate
JOURNAL NAME:
Open Access Library Journal,
Vol.11 No.12,
December
30,
2024
ABSTRACT: This study was conducted on the outskirts of the Douala-Edea National Park (Mouanko, Littoral Cameroon), as part of the project “The Restoration Initiative (TRI)”. It aims to determine the growth rate of nursery seedlings of Ricinodendron heudelotii, Irvingia gabonensis, and Garcinia kola. The inventory method made it possible to identify the importance of the NTFP species chosen by the local communities in the coastal forest. The collection of the chosen species was achieved using wildlings and seeds of NTFP. The species were treated by the vegetative propagation technique between the months of April and June 2021. Forest soil was collected, the substrate was filled in the biodegradable polystyrene bags, and then the wildlings were sown. A total of 132 plants of the three species Ndjansang (98), Bush mango (24), and Bitter kola (12) were selected for the study. The analysis of the biometric data in the nursery showed that the average growth (height/diameter) rate (Tc) of the seedlings for the species was Tc = 8.97 for Ricinodendron heudelotii, Tc = 9.36 for Irvingia gabonensis and Tc = 6.64 for Garcinia kola. The study showed that each species has a growth limit in the nursery that must be respected to optimize the recovery of plants in plantations in order to successfully rehabilitate degraded ecosystems. Through this study, local communities could be restored in coastal forests, guaranteeing their well-being and strengthening nature conservation in protected areas.