{"id":14278,"date":"2026-06-20T12:34:24","date_gmt":"2026-06-20T12:34:24","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/dev.iita.org\/news-item\/nigerian-conservation-foundation-donates-seedlings-to-reforest-burnt-iita-forest-section\/"},"modified":"2026-06-29T21:29:26","modified_gmt":"2026-06-29T21:29:26","slug":"nigerian-conservation-foundation-donates-seedlings-to-reforest-burnt-iita-forest-section","status":"publish","type":"news-item","link":"https:\/\/iita.org\/fr\/news-item\/nigerian-conservation-foundation-donates-seedlings-to-reforest-burnt-iita-forest-section\/","title":{"rendered":"Nigerian Conservation Foundation donates seedlings to reforest burnt IITA Forest section"},"content":{"rendered":"<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">A forest fire, probably from neighboring garbage and weed burning, burned down a section of the IITA Forest Reserve in February 2021. Though the IITA Security Unit and the forest night rangers curtailed the fire, many trees suffered severe damage. The IITA Forest Center, therefore, called on the Nigerian Conservation Foundation (NCF) to donate seedlings to replant the burnt area\u2014a request they readily obliged.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><figure id=\"attachment_24771\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-24771\" style=\"width: 820px\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><img fetchpriority=\"high\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-24771 size-full\" src=\"https:\/\/iita.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/Ademola-Ajayi-IITA-Forest-Center-Field-Supervisor-welcoming-the-invited-guests-NCF-partner-school-pupils-and-IITA-Security-guards.jpg\" alt=\"Ademola Ajayi, IITA Forest Center Field Supervisor, welcoming the invited guests: NCF partner, school pupils and IITA Security guards.\" width=\"820\" height=\"411\" \/><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-24771\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Ademola Ajayi, IITA Forest Center Field Supervisor, welcoming the invited guests: NCF partner, school pupils and IITA Security guards.<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">On 27 May, members of the Nigerian Conservation Foundation (NCF)\u2014Dr Joseph Onoja, Wenceslas Gatarabirwa, Ian Barber, and Paul Insua-Cao\u2014and student-members of IITA Forest Center\u2019s Schools Conservation Club (SCC) converged at the IITA Forest Reserve to replant trees in the burnt area. The SCC members were students from two secondary schools in Ibadan, Nigeria.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><figure id=\"attachment_24775\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-24775\" style=\"width: 641px\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-24775\" src=\"https:\/\/iita.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/NCF-partner-planting-a-tree-seedling-flanked-by-his-colleagues-scaled.jpg\" alt=\"NCF partner planting a tree seedling flanked by his colleagues, Forest Center staff, and IITA DDG Corporate Services, Hilde Koper (left).\" width=\"641\" height=\"427\" \/><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-24775\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">NCF partner planting a tree seedling flanked by his colleagues, Forest Center staff, and IITA DDG Corporate Services, Hilde Koper (left).<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">NCF partners with the IITA Forest Center to conserve tree seedlings and donated 2400 seedlings to restore the burnt area. Contributing to the tree replanting operation is a win-win for IITA and NCF, as the IITA Forest Reserve is one of the Important Bird Areas (IBAs) for NCF\u2019s bird monitoring activities. The conservation of the trees at IITA Forest Reserve would consequently keep the bird\u2019s habitat intact. NCF also sponsors IITA Forest Center\u2019s School Conservation Clubs, where students learn to collect seeds, watch and identify birds and other wildlife, and find out how to conserve all types of flora and fauna.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><figure id=\"attachment_24776\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-24776\" style=\"width: 646px\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-24776\" src=\"https:\/\/iita.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/School-pupil-guided-by-IITA-Forest-Center-staff-to-plant-a-tree-seedling-scaled.jpg\" alt=\"School pupil guided by IITA Forest Center staff to plant a tree seedling.\" width=\"646\" height=\"430\" \/><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-24776\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">School pupil guided by IITA Forest Center staff to plant a tree seedling.<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">During the exercise, they planted over 11 species of indigenous trees. The diverse tree species planted would prevent spreading diseases peculiar to particular tree species\u2014if such incidences occur.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Some of the trees planted were <em>Erythrophleum suaveolens<\/em> (Ordeal tree), African maple tree, <em>Entandrophragma angolense<\/em><em>,<\/em> <em>Cola gigantea, and Khaya ivorensis.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Olukunle Olasupo, IITA Forest Center Field Supervisor and 2018 winner of the March Christian Award of the prestigious Botanic Gardens Conservation, coordinated the planting session. The goal was to replenish indigenous trees to support other life forms native and adaptable to the environment.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><figure id=\"attachment_24777\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-24777\" style=\"width: 620px\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-24777\" src=\"https:\/\/iita.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/IITA-DDG-Corporate-Services-planting-the-African-Maple-tree-seedling-scaled.jpg\" alt=\"IITA DDG Corporate Services planting the African Maple tree seedling.\" width=\"620\" height=\"413\" \/><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-24777\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">IITA DDG Corporate Services planting the African Maple tree seedling.<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">After the tree planting demonstration by Olasupo, the guests and students took to planting different trees already placed at the base of different stacks in the field. Hilde Koper, IITA Deputy Director General, Corporate Services, planted the African maple tree. This cultural tree hosts the African Silk Worm used in making the African native fabric Sanyon.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><figure id=\"attachment_24778\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-24778\" style=\"width: 640px\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-24778\" src=\"https:\/\/iita.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/Pupils-teachers-and-some-Forest-Center-staff-after-planting-seedlings-at-the-burnt-area-scaled.jpg\" alt=\"Pupils, teachers, and some Forest Center staff after planting seedlings at the burnt area.\" width=\"640\" height=\"426\" \/><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-24778\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Pupils, teachers, and some Forest Center staff after planting seedlings at the burnt area.<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The leader of the NCF delegation, Onoja, planted <em>Entandrophragma angolense<\/em>, an excellent timber tree that takes about 35 years to bring out its first flower. Other invited conservationists planted <em>Cola gigantea and Khaya ivorensis, choice timber trees already endangered and on the IUCN red list.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><em>Contributed by Folake Oduntan<\/em><\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>A forest fire, probably from neighboring garbage and weed burning, burned down a section of the IITA Forest Reserve in February 2021.<\/p>","protected":false},"featured_media":14279,"template":"","meta":{"site-sidebar-layout":"default","site-content-layout":"","ast-site-content-layout":"default","site-content-style":"default","site-sidebar-style":"default","ast-global-header-display":"","ast-banner-title-visibility":"","ast-main-header-display":"","ast-hfb-above-header-display":"","ast-hfb-below-header-display":"","ast-hfb-mobile-header-display":"","site-post-title":"","ast-breadcrumbs-content":"","ast-featured-img":"","footer-sml-layout":"","theme-transparent-header-meta":"","adv-header-id-meta":"","stick-header-meta":"","header-above-stick-meta":"","header-main-stick-meta":"","header-below-stick-meta":"","astra-migrate-meta-layouts":"default","ast-page-background-enabled":"default","ast-page-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center 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