In Tay Giang district (Quang Nam province), there is a jungle with giant Fokienia trees aged nearly 1,000 years old which is considered a treasure of nature.
Fokienia trees
Hundreds of giant Fokienia trees have been preserved well in Tay Giang jungle.
The diameter of these trees is up to 7 metres. Co Tu people believe that the forest will protect them, so they take good care of them and considered them as a treasure.
There are 1,366 Fokienia trees covering an area of 240 hectares of forest in the two communes - Axan and Tr’Hy.
The forest rangers are limited, it is thus necessary to rely on the people there to protect the forest.
Forkienia is considered the sacred tree of the Co Tu people in the highlands of Tay Giang, so it is well preserved and protected.
All the Fokienia trees are numbered and has a positioning chip for easy tracking.
In 2016, 725 Fokienia trees were recognised as heritage trees. According to Co Tu people, forest protection is protecting themselves.
The villagers annually organize a great thanksgiving ceremony to express their gratitude towards the forest. Currently, the preservation of Fokienia is carried out, starting with saplings.
Besides, the Fokienia forest is exploited for tourism activities.
A Co Tu village in the Fokienia forest
Tay Giang has built a cultural village of Co Tu people in the Fokienia forest so that visitors and tourists going there have a place to rest.
It is hoped that the heritage Fokienia forest will become a tourist destination attractive to more and more visitors, contributing to the forest protection and bettering the local income.
