Seeds of hope: IITA Forest Center expands conservation work through seed collection and student training in FUTA and FUTO

In its continued commitment to conserving Nigeria’s threatened and endangered native trees, the IITA Forest Center recently embarked on another strategic round of seed collection. This activity, part of the Center’s conservation mission, focused on enriching the live gene bank at its Tree Heritage Park, popularly known as The Noah’s Ark. It also aimed to expand the number of propagation protocols in the Manual of Tree Propagation on the IITA Forest Center website, which is freely downloadable for users to propagate native tree species on their own.

Olukunle Olasupo, IITA Forest Center Field Supervisor, extended the mission to two critical biodiversity hubs: Okomu National Park in Edo State and Queen’s Forest Reserve in Ondo State. The objective was twofold: to collect seeds and cuttings from rare and threatened tree species, and to enrich the Forest Center’s bank of propagation protocols for native tree species.

A remarkable coincidence marked the mission at FUTA. In a symbolic twist, a rare Stereospermum acuminatissimum tree, the only surviving tree species remaining on the FUTA campus, had fallen. Olasupo, a passionate conservation expert, took the occasion to train students in various techniques to conserve native tree species. In what Olukunle describes as “a coincidence of nature screaming help, speaking thanks, and reward for labor,” this moment presented the perfect opportunity to educate students on seed and non-seed propagation techniques.

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