> Dalbergia cultrate, known locally as doulai, Dalbergia
> cochinchinensis, known as khanhung , and Cunninghamla sinensis, or
> longleng , are at the top of the official list of 12 endangered tree
> species in Laos.
>
> "These species are endangered because their timber is highly valued.
> People cut them down because they can get a good price for the wood,"
> said a Forestry Department official, Mr Siliphone Phomseksan.
>
> He said that people placed such a high price on doulai wood because of
> its attractive grain, colouring and supposed medical benefits. It was
> especially popular in China, where it was turned into furniture,
> decorative items and Buddha images.
>
> Chinese people also believed the doulai to be a sacred tree that could
> protect them from evil, he added.
>
> According to the Ministry of Industry and Commerce, doulai logs are
> sold for US$60,000 per cubic metre, mostly to China.
>
> Mr Siliphone said that another endangered tree, the khanhung or
> Dalbergia cochinchinensis, was widespread in Laos and fetched around US
> $8,000 per cubic metre. It is used for furniture and decorative items
> due its colour and strength.
>
> The third most threatened species, Cunninghamla sinensis, known to
> local people as longleng, is found in Xieng Khuang and Huaphan
> provinces. People believe it can be used in the treatment of high
> blood pressure.
>
> "People who have high blood pressure think that sleeping on a bed made
> of longleng wood will cure them," he said.
>
> Mr Siliphone is a tree breeder at the Phontong Tree Breeding Garden in
> Chanthabouly district and said he found the list of endangered tree
> species to be very helpful.
>
> He explained that the list gave him a better idea of what species to
> grow to help prevent them from becoming extinct. He has successfully
> bred doulai, khanhung and longleng, and has young trees available for
> sale.
>
> He said the Lao government wanted to encourage people to start growing
> the endangered trees for commercial purposes, adding that these trees
> could become even m ore expensive since Laos was the only the country
> in the region with the potential to grow them commercially, due to its
> tropical location and fertile soil.
>
> Although they take more than 20 years to mature, people who grow these
> trees on a large scale stand to make a considerable profit, he added.
>
> By Ekaphone Phouthonesy
> (Latest Update January 9, 2007)