ANALYSIS OF FOREST TREE SPECIES RETENTION AND CULTIVATION IN RURAL FARMING SYSTEMS IN CROSS RIVER STATE, NIGERIA.

Abstract

The study assessed forest tree species retention and cultivation habits of the people in rural farming systems of Cross River State, Nigeria. The study covers the rainforest zone of Cross River State extending from Biase, Yakurr, Obubra, Etung, Ikom, Boki, Obudu to Obanliku. The Participatory Rural Appraisal (PRA) method, household questionnaire survey techniques and field inventory and measurement were used to collect primary data for analysis. The Principal component Analysis (PCA) was adopted to reduce nine factors of forest trees retention and cultivation habits of rural people such as economic, socio-cultural,, food, ecological, agronomic, shelter, distance reduction and others. These factors were collapse to two main dimensions (socio-economic/ecological and rural development factors), which explain 86.56% of reasons for tree retention and culmination into rural farming systems. The finding further shows that tree retention and cultivation habits of the rural people are influenced by their role in soil protection, climate moderation within farmlands and biodiversity conservation. These three factors attracted a mean population of 67.22, 59.89 and 57.56 respectively. Also, the result reveals that trees in the rural farming systems significantly predict the quantity and income of forest products. But, the student t-test analysis indicated statistical difference between the quantity of forest resources from trees on farmlands and high forest, thus rejecting the hypothesis. And because the mean value of quantity of products from trees in high forest (12,108.60g) was higher than products from trees on farmlands (7,914kg), therefore, trees products from high forest provides greater quantity than farmlands. Although, the quantity of tree products from forest and farmlands predicts 99.6percent of the variance in quantity of rural products in the area, but quantity from forest contribute more than the farmlands. This is indicated by coefficients of 0.77 and 0.499 receptively, thus rejecting the hypothesis and confirming that “because of the retention and cultivation of trees into farming systems the benefits profile of the study population varies significantly according to farms and forests in the study area. The t-test for income of products from trees in the forests and farms show a statistically significant difference. This implies that tree products from the forest with higher income of N705,284.94 per annum and income from farms (N357,288.568) was considered to have predicted the gross income of rural people per annum in the area. Although, a positive relationship between income of products from forest and farms to the gross income of the study population exist but income of products from forest with a higher beta coefficient of 0.67 contributes more significantly to the estimated gross annual income of the people from all sources. Based on the above findings, the study recommended that since trees are critical factors  to human population existence, it may be necessary to adopt landuse systems that can encourage tree retention and cultivation habits in the rural areas. Also, tree retention and cultivation practices should be improved in rural farmlands in order to increase benefits vis-à-vis reducing population pressure from the primary forest in the rainforest villages of Cross River State, Nigeria.

Keywords: Tree retention, Tree cultivation, Forest, Farming system, Quantity and Income.