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โครงการหนังสออเล็กทรอนกสด้านการเกษตร เฉลมพระเกียรตพระบาทสมเด็จพระเจ้าอยู่หัว
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TEAK IN MEKONG
Figure 4-1 Map of teak tree seed sources in Lao PDR
Teak Plantations in Lao PDR country bringing the area under teak
plantation from a mere 2,937 ha in 1990 to
With the sharp drop in area under teak in
natural forests it is recognized today as a 40,000 ha in 2012 (DoF, 2013).
‘special tree’ and attracts specific In northern Lao PDR, the expansion of
protection under the national legislation. smallholder teak plantations in the past
The planting of teak by smallholders has decade has contributed to a transition from
also been promoted by government policies swidden farming landscape to a forested
since the 1980s in recognition of its high landscape, in line with the government
value its potential to provide opportunities policy objectives to eliminate swidden
for generation of farm income, and to agriculture and increase the nation’s forest
increase lands under permanent production cover. Driven by a range of incentives, teak
of highly valued teak plantations have become increasingly
prominent in the province of Luang
instead of temporary cultivation of paddy
under shifting cultivation on steep hill Prabang, especially in villages close to
slopes. Demonstration of teak propagation Luang Prabang City. Both smallholders and
and plantation began in 1915 on small scale urban-based landowners are now involved
in Luang Prabang province and then was in small-scale teak plantations, either by
taken up at commercial scale beginning planting land they previously used for
1942 (Midgley et al., 2015). The civil war swidden agriculture or by acquiring
brought the progress to a halt between 1975 existing teak stands (Newby et al., 2014).
to 1996 after which the Laotian government Luang Prabang provincial authorities had
has been promoting teak planting across the considerable success in their efforts to
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