Forest Products, Livelihoods and Conservation

40 ‘Chop, but no broke pot’: the case of Prunus Africana on Mount Cameroon

Photo 1. Measuring dbh of large individual of P. africana (Photo by T.C.H. Sunderland)

is also closely associated with mean annual temperatures of 11°C to 19°C in the

coolest months and 17°C to 23°C in the warmest (Fraser et al. unpublished

report). It is also evident on Mount Cameroon that P. africana thrives in dense

stands in areas recently disturbed by volcanic activity, being one of the first

species to colonise and form a forest canopy on recent lava flows. Figure 1

illustrates how Prunus africana is heavily concentrated (density represented by

colours and numbers) on recent incursions of lava into montane forest areas

and disappears completely from the climax (undisturbed) montane forest, as on

the north-western flank, which has for the most part not been affected by lava

flows for some centuries. Figure 2 shows the main area of P. africana occurrence

in the study area. The mean density of P. africana individuals on Mount Cameroon

with a diameter at breast height (DBH) of greater than 20 cm is estimated at 5.5

trees/ha (ONADEF unpublished report).

The soil in the Mount Cameroon area is volcanic based and such recent laval

soils with their associated pyroclastic ash are highly useful for commercial

agricultural purposes (FAO-UNESCO 1977). The land use system in the raw material

producing area is not in particular conflict with the sustainability of the resource

in the wild because much of this intensive agriculture occurs at altitudes below

the altitudinal range of P. africana.

There is growing interest on the part of the communities, as well as research

and environmental institutions, in the domestication of P. africana. Basic

requirements of P. africana seed production and nursery have been studied by

Sunderland and Nkefor (1997) and, more recently, by the International Centre

for Research in Agroforestry (ICRAF) for vegetative multiplication (Tchoundjeu

et al. 2002). Sunderland and Nkefor (1997) reported that, if basic cleaning and

storage requirements of Prunus seeds are satisfied, Prunus seeds maintain

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