This project has been completed under the direction of Peace Corps Volunteer Kristin Field.
To read about the beginning of the project, CLICK HERE.
The project was to plant an additional 1,000 environmentally-friendly trees in the water catchment area on Boyo Hill in Njinikom.
Kristin reports:
I am happy to report the tree planting project has been completed.
The first week, the tree seedlings were transported to Njinikom by car, and the planting itself took place the following week. The planting took four days with between 7 and 15 community members planting each day. The community members carried the seedlings an hour up the hill, dug all of the holes, and planted 820 trees- 600 Prunus Africana, 150 Bottle Brush, and 70 Calliandra.
We originally planned to plant 1,000, but we ended up with 820 trees for a few reasons. First of all, when we picked up our funds the exchange rate wasn’t as good as we budgeted for.
Secondly, some seedlings died between transportation and planting. The nursery is going to replace these trees though, as soon as they have seedlings that are old enough to plant. After we receive these additional trees in the coming months we should have about 900 in total.
Finally, we originally planned to plant only two types of trees, but when we went to purchase the seedlings, a third type was also available but a bit more expensive than the others. The agroforestry man heading up the project, Chia Lawrence, decided it would be better to get a few less trees in exchange for more plant diversity. As he has been planting trees and working on water committees in Cameroon these last 25 years, I trusted his judgment.
All in all, the planting was a success. The community members organized all of the planting days and worked for hours in the rain in order to get this project finished. I was truly impressed with their motivation.
Thank you so much for giving us the opportunity to do this project.
We are grateful to Kristin for completing this project, and again extend our thanks to those who have donated to date.
