Starting a Tree Farm

Starting a tree farm business will help in conserving and reviving the forest. This is the best business among all the green businesses available right away. In order to be successful, you need to plan and read about this venture.

You need to do some tasks and buy equipment to help you in making the tree farm business grow.

Tree farms or known as tree nurseries are forests that are privately owned and managed for the production of timber. Tree farmers are called to those people who managed these plantations. Most tree farms are certified by an organization called American Tree Farm System. Tree farms are usually established because forests are little by little being taken down and the effort of reforestation is not sustainable enough. A tree farm owner manages this certain piece of land for wood, wildlife and recreation. If you are a type of person who have the heart for conserving the environment, then starting a tree farm business could be a good business venture for you.

Planning to become a tree farmer is not that simple as you are not stopped with planting trees and seeing them grow. There are tasks at hand but don’t be discouraged as there are some tools that could help you with the job.

Preparing the site

Choosing a location for your tree farm involves keen observation of the area. Site preparation includes hiring a logger that can help you in clearing the location of your choice. Remember to practice good logging techniques involve leaving behind woody debris on the ground. Clearing the whole area can give you the perfect ground to start tree planting.

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Planting of trees

As we all know planting is done by using shovel and other tools. Make sure that before you start planting you know the basic of doing so in order to become successful. Controlling of the growth of weeds is very important during the first few years of planting because they can compete with the growing seedling when it comes to nutrients.

Putting property lines

When it comes to tree farm business, it is important to have a complete measure of your property in order to anticipate the growth of trees. There are a lot of instruments that could help you in doing this task. A clinometer is a sample of the tool that can measure height, diameter and circumference of a tree. This is good when you want to map out the growth of the forest.

Getting the harvest

After all the hard work, this is where the profit comes in. Before doing this, you need to have equipments that will do the job. Chainsaws, wedges, axes, logging tapes and a lot more are the tools when it comes to harvesting. It is important to keep track of everything that you do for future reference.

Taking Precautions

Your tree farm business should follow the guidelines imposed by forestry office when it comes to fire safety and protection. This way you are not prone to start a huge disaster.

Investing on Equipment

The property that you have is considered as your huge investment. The equipment and tools that you need are also part of this investment. A reliable chainsaw and tractor are essential ones. The market got a good selection of these equipments. All you need to do is research and compare prices to get the best one.

Courtesy of - www.startupbizhub.com

Trees: a great investment

A leading blogger in financial , banking and technology  Bankelele (http://www.bankelele.co.ke/) in an post way back in 2005 had illuminated the investment potential of commercial trees. The facts remain the same and any investor who took up the call to action in 2005, must be waiting to reap the benefits at any time now. Read the article below:-

Bankelele

Nairobi writer on Banking, Finance, Technology, and Investments

Monday, August 08, 2005

Trees: a great investment

Kenya has a forest cover estimated at 1.7% and shrinking. Yet, tree planting is actually a great investment opportunity that has remained under-appreciated in many parts of the country. 

Market
Depending on how you space the tree seedlings at planting and when you harvest the trees, there is a market for them. After 3 -4 years, you can harvest and sell the trees at 1 - – 4,000 shillings each for firewood or from 5 – 8 years, you can sell them off at 6,000 shillings per tree for poles. This can translate to profits of between 1 million and 6 million shillingsper acre ($13,000 - $80,000 per acre) all from an initial crop of tree seedlings that can be bought for about 10 shillings each. One also has to factor in the opportunity cost of not growing maize or other cash/food crops over the years on the land, but these tend to have high annual production costs. Also, one advantage of trees is that they can be planted on undesirable or uncultivated land.
Major buyers of trees include tea factories (who use firewood to process tea leaves), Kenya Power & Lighting Company, East African Cables, Telkom (for poles), and numerous saw millers and local wood vendors. 

Dangers: 
Two main ones are fire and pests/disease which can wipe out a mature crop of trees. Also one must also protect land from squatters, who may destroy trees for firewood, or to build homes in what they consider to be “unoccupied forest” land, or whose grazing animals may eat young tree seedlings. 

Science
Numerous advances have been made in research to speed up tree growth, and new fast-growing hybrids of trees from South Africa and Australia can be easily obtained. Some of the trees being planted around the country by enterprising land owners include Pinus, cypress eucalyptus grandis, and blue gum. 
the Future
One farmer told me that he has no worries about funding his kids university education in ten years time and even recommended that parents should plant one acre of trees per child to cater for the cost of their upbringing and education.

Courtesy of Bankelele

TV Interview on Commercial Forestry

Please find the video link to the KTN Youtube page HERE

KEFGA in the News Part III

As the sensitization campaign gains momentum, KEFGA has been in the news and below are some of the news and commentaries that we have been able to get hold of:-

The People Daily- January 10 pg 40

The Star January 18/19 pgVII

The People January 18 pg 12

 The People Daily January 20 pg 41

 The Star January 20 pg 12

 The Star January 21 pg 39

 People Daily January 23 pg 21

Standard January 23 pg 27

KEFGA Event at Royal Court - Mombasa

Mr. Z. K. Nderu  who is Chairman of Kenya  Environment Trust was the Guest of Honour in Mombasa. 

Mr. Benson Kanyi- KEFGA Secretary General makes his remarks at the Mombasa event.

A Eucalayptus plantation that local journalists and tree growers visited in Kilifi area. 

Mr.Itumo Moindi making a presentation during the event in Mombasa. He is the KEFGA Representative in Coast Region. 

Question and answer session in Mombasa during the Commercial Forestry sensitization event   

Q: For one to be a KEFGA member is there minimum acreage one should own?
     Mr. Joseph Githnji, Tree Farmer.
A:  To be a member one needs to have at least 2 acres of land.
      (Mr. Benson Kanyi. Sec’ General KEFGA).

Q: Can KEFGA assist tree farmers in acquiring land?
     Juma Goshi. Tree farmer in Kilifii

A: Currently we are not even getting funding and we have no means of helping farmers to acquire land. But I believe if we come together and create mass, we can address such issues.
(Mr. Benson Kanyi).

Q: What steps is KEFGA taking in value addition for Kenya Power and Lighting Company poles?

A: KEFGA is encouraging local investors to establish wood treatment plants to take full advantage of the supply from commercial forest growers. In future KEFGA will mobilize resources to establish own plants for value addition.

Not so long ago, the Kenya Power and Lighting Company put out a tender for 1,000, 000 poles. Unfortunately, the bulk of this will be imported meaning we are losing and we will continue to do so if do not start acting. We need to form associations to drum up our cause. 
(Mr. Benson Kanyi)

Q: Can farmers benefit from carbon trading.
Moffat Mutero: Journalist from Climate Change Magazine.

A: Yes farmers can benefit from carbon trading as long as they are registered. However, the issue of carbon trading is a complex one. Countries in the KYOTO protocol have failed to agree on the way forward. However, this is an issue that can be pursed to benefit local tree farmers in the near future.
(Mr Benson Kanyi).

Q: Can KEFGA negotiate with the government to provide distillers to treat oil extract from the Muringa tree?

 A: We have made several pleas to the government to support tree farmers but all have been fruitless. I believe if we commit ourselves to working in groups, in future we can manage to convince the government to provide such equipment as well as other forms of support.
(Mr. Kennedy Kahembe Technical Manager at KEFGA)

Government asked to allocate land for commercial tree growing during KEFGA Mombasa event.

The government is being urged to ensure it allocates land to the locals in the coast region in the one million acre Galana-Kulalu irrigation scheme that was launched in the beginning of this year by President Uhuru Kenyatta. 

The project, aimed at increasing food security, creating wealth and employment opportunities, will see the government inject some US dollars 42 million in the first phase of the project.

According to Mr. ZK Nderu, chairman of the Environment Trust, the government plans to rollout a tender to lease the land which will automatically lock out locals as they will not all qualify.

“I have made a plea to the government to come up with a plan that will ensure the common mwananchi in the coast region is allocated land. We need to have stake in this project. If foreigners get all the land, how then can we claim that the project is Kenya’s,” said Mr. Nderu.

Speaking during a sensitization event in Mombasa for current and potential private forest growers in the Coast region, Mr Nderu proposed to the government to allocate some 300 acres then subdivide into 5acres each and allocate to the locals.

“Let Kenyans settle in those lands and acquire skills to utilize the land. There are several projects that the locals can adopt to earn a leaving, for instance, tree planting for commercial purposes. Given the good weather condition in the coast region, tree planting would prosper and earn the farmers good returns,” he said.

The Kenya Forest Growers Association (KEFGA), is a voluntary membership organisation representing and promoting commercial forestry and tree growing in Kenya. The association has been on a campaign trail in regions with high potential for tree growing.

According to Mr. Benson Kanyi the Secretary General of KEFGA commercial forestry has real potential to produce wealth for the poor either through direct participation as growers or through employment.

“Commercial forestry has potential to solve unemployment in the rural areas because for every hectare planted, three jobs are created for at least eight years”, said Mr Kanyi adding that there are many landowners who are potential tree growers and government should support them by providing incentives like funding and training tree farmers feel that commercial forestry will contribute to economic growth if the government supports the sector and more so include the sector in the Forest Bill due for debate in Parliament soon. In the current bill, commercial forestry is hardly recognized and most emphasis is on the conservation of natural forests in the limited state forests.

KEFGA, was formed and registered in 2008. It currently has 300 member who include commercial growers ranging in scale from 2 to 1, 000 acres who are located in numerous counties. So far the association has invested Ksh.1.2 billion and created 30,000 jobs.  

KEFGA In the news Part II

As the KEFGA Sensitization and Awareness campaign continues around the country, the media has taken notice of the pertinent issues being raised. The following is coverage in the recent past:-