Discover centuries-old ironwood forests in the rice-growing district of Nghe An province.

Treasures of Quy Lang

Lang Thanh Commune,Yen Thanh districtFormerly known as Quy Lang, this locality boasts many "firsts": the largest communal house in the region, the commune with the largest area in the district...

In particular, Quy Lang boasts a rare and vast forest of ironwood trees, planted by ancestors hundreds of years ago. Elderly people recount that they saw this forest when they were young, with tree trunks as thick as temple pillars. Some believe that the Quy Lang ironwood forest was planted over 300 years ago.

The land of Quỳ Lăng is closely associated with the ironwood forest, represented by the ever-flowing Sừng pond, which meanders through the ironwood forest, creating a picturesque landscape.

When it comes to the benefits of the Quy Lang teak forest, the locals are proud, saying that besides its value as a preserved historical site inherited from their ancestors, the teak forest also creates a beautiful landscape.ecological environmentNaturally, the abundant water source has been closely linked to the lives of the people of Quỳ Lăng for generations. Therefore, the lim forest and Bàu Sừng lake are images of nature deeply imprinted in the hearts of every person born and raised here.

From the center of the commune, together with Mr. Nguyen Huu Binh, a forestry officer of Lang Thanh commune, we went to the ironwood forests in places like Ru Chua, and further afield to Hoc Nong, Dong Bau, Ve Thang, Hon Sao, Dong Nhiem… every area has large, tall ironwood trees. According to Mr. Binh, at one point, the entire local ironwood forest had over 2,000 trees, concentrated in an area of ​​106 hectares of special-use forest.

Along with the ironwood trees, there are countless other miscellaneous trees, but ironwood accounts for up to 70% of the forest. Due to being planted a long time ago, the diameter of the ironwood tree trunks ranges from 60 cm to nearly 1 meter. What is particularly valuable is that the ironwood of Quỳ Lăng is a type of "caterpillar" ironwood and "green" ironwood, with a solid core and beautiful patterns. In Vietnam, green ironwood is classified among the four most precious woods (ironwood, ironwood, rosewood, and teak). With such a large area and number of trees, it can be affirmed that nowhere else in Nghe An province has an ironwood forest like Quỳ Lăng.

According to locals, from the late 20th century onwards, pineapple plants were grown entirely under the canopy of the ironwood forest. The native pineapple variety used to produce large, fragrant, sweet, and delicious fruits, providing hundreds of families with income from selling pineapples during harvest season.

However, later on, Cayen pineapples were widely cultivated in many localities, so people stopped replanting native pineapples under the canopy of the teak forests. At the same time, there were periods when teak trees died for unknown reasons, and encroachment on the teak forests occurred, causing the number of teak trees to gradually decrease, replaced by planted acacia and melaleuca forests.

The risk of the teak forest disappearing.

Speaking about the protection of the precious lim forest in Quỳ Lăng over the past two-thirds of a century, Mr. Nguyễn Hồ Sơn - Chairman of the People's Committee of Lăng Thành commune - said that before 1945, the entire lim forest was under the ownership of several individual households and clans. Every year, these families planted additional lim saplings in the forest and nurtured other valuable forest products such as mahogany, lim, and trai trees, as well as some undergrowth such as pineapple and rattan.

By 1954, the entire area of ​​ironwood forest was handed over to the Lang Thanh Cooperative for general management. While the forest was thriving, in 1991, a caterpillar infestation occurred, killing many ancient ironwood trees. In addition, the Cooperative's management of the ironwood forest was ineffective, as the protection team, composed of elderly people, was unable to handle the responsibility, and large areas of the forest were encroached upon by humans.

By 2001, the entire area of ​​teak forest was allocated to households for management, in accordance with the State's land and forest allocation policy. Since then, many households have introduced acacia and eucalyptus trees to plant in the teak forest, leading to an increasing number of people converting teak forest areas to cultivate trees for paper production.

To protect the ancient ironwood forest, a priceless asset for future generations, on January 10, 2014, the People's Committee of Nghe An province issued Decision No. 112/QD-UBND approving the planning of special-use forests associated with historical and cultural relics and landscapes in Yen Thanh district until 2020, which includes the ironwood forest in Lang Thanh commune. The purpose is to call on the State to implement certain investment mechanisms and policies to develop the ironwood forest.

Therefore, from 2015 to 2016, the entire teak forest was managed by the People's Committee of the commune. From then on, the commune established a police force to be responsible for protecting the teak forest. At the same time, the People's Committee of the commune submitted a proposal to the People's Committee of the district and relevant departments requesting a policy to revoke the land use certificates of households receiving teak forest land so that the People's Committee of the commune could direct the development of the teak forest more effectively.

However, the area of ​​the Quy Lang teak forest has significantly decreased. Statistics from the Lang Thanh Commune People's Committee show that in 2014, out of the 106 hectares of special-use forest, 81.6 hectares were natural forest, 17.99 hectares were planted acacia and eucalyptus trees, and 6.74 hectares were barren land. Conversely, by 2020, out of that 106 hectares of special-use forest, the natural forest had decreased to 25 hectares, while the planted acacia and eucalyptus trees had increased to 81.35 hectares. The reason is that households have been encroaching on the forest land, failing to distinguish between their family gardens and forest land.

Unfortunately, the number of dying teak trees in Lang Thanh commune is increasing. In September 2023, the commune's People's Committee established an inspection team to count 146 teak trees that had died in 50 households that received land for planting, and found that the cause of death was unknown.

To effectively protect the Quy Lang cypress forest, Mr. Nguyen Ho Son, Chairman of the Lang Thanh Commune People's Committee, suggested that the forestry sector and other relevant departments need to promptly address the overlapping responsibilities between special-use, production, and protection forests in management. He also emphasized the need to verify the origin of land use rights, planted forests, and protection forests to implement stricter forest management measures.

If the forest remains designated as a special-use forest, then higher authorities will have new support policies and strategies to both conserve the teak trees and bring about economic benefits commensurate with the region.

Currently, the Quỳ Lăng ironwood forest is receiving attention from local authorities and is being managed as a special-use forest, gradually developing into an attractive eco-tourism tour in Yên Thành district: Rú Gám Temple (Xuân Thành) - Vệ Vừng Dam (Đồng Thành) - Quản Hài Dam (Phúc Thành) - Quỳ Lăng Ironwood Forest.