Indigenous trees and their role

in rural livelihoods in spate

irrigated areas
Tihama Region, Republic of Yemen

SpN and ILEIA Documentation

 Tihama zones and their native trees

Zone 3
Mid-land to mountainous
Zone 2
Zone I
RF: 300 to 400 mm/year
Arid/semi-arid lowland
Arid coastal lowland
Red Sea RF: 100 to 200 mm/year
EC:< 0.7dS/m
RF: 50 - 100 mm/year
Stretch:30 km
Coast EC:1-2 dS/m
EC >3 ds/m
Stretch: 20 km Stretch: 25 km

Zone 1: Mangroove, Dome and Nehal trees

Zone 2: Selam, Arack, Temariks and Haleg trees
Zone 3: Daber and Sedr trees

SpN and ILEIA Documentation

Acacia Eherenbergiana
Selam Tree

SpN and ILEIA Documentation

 Some basic facts

 Most imporant & dominant

 Land coverage: 22,000 ha (2005)
 Resilient to drought:
 Grows well in areas with RF < 150
mm/year
 Moderately tolerant to salinity
 High regeneration capacity
 No dominant stem
 Life span: 10 to 15 years
 Tree height: 3 to 5 m
 Length of thorns: 8 cm

SpN and ILEIA Documentation

 Major benefits

 Flowers Selam Honey:

Thick and dark
 Most loved by bees
 Selam Honey
 Arguably the best
 Used for famous dishes: ‘Fata’
and ‘Bit Al-Sahan’, (bread with
honey)
 Cost: USD 30/liter

SpN and ILEIA Documentation

 Major benefits

 Leaves and thorns

 Best feed for goats
 Rich in proteins
 Effective in goat fattening

SpN and ILEIA Documentation

 Major benefits

 Stem - wood
 Charcoal production:
• Arguably the best
• Lits quick and stay lit long
• USD 5 per sack (about 20 kg)

 Keteran:
• Fluid extracted from charcoal
• Cure for animal (goat, sheep,
camel) skin diseases

SpN and ILEIA Documentation

 Charcoal production process

 Cut tree, trim leaves, and burn

in a controlled manner, to remove
thorns

 Pile thorn-free wood in good

order
 Cover the piled wood with
sorghum/millet residues left
over by animals

SpN and ILEIA Documentation

 Charcoal production steps

 Cover with metal sheet and then soil

 Ignite wood through small opening – let it
burn for a week. After three days, fluid shed
by the burning wood (Keteran) can be
collected by inserting a pipe through the
opening.
 Close opening with soil, allow 3 days for
cooling
 Un-earth the woods, break them down and
pack them in sacks
 Sell on site or deliver to the market

SpN and ILEIA Documentation

 Words of caution and wisdom
 While charcoal prodution is source
of livelihood for some, it should be
conrolled:
 Selam Tree coverage has decreased
from 44,000 ha in 1970 to 22,000 ha in
2005 (TDA records)
 “Iza Labu Sheger Selam, Labu
Alnob, Labu Alasel, Labu alkenem,
Labu Alakel” (if there is no Selam Tree,
there are no bees, there is no honey,
there are no goats, there is no food),
words of the old namdic father seen in
the picure

SpN and ILEIA Documentation

Zizphus spina-christ
Sedr/Elb/Argh

SpN and ILEIA Documentation

 Some basic facts

 Second to Selam, the most

important tree
 Sparsely puputated - area
coverage estimate:10,000 ha
 Sensitive to drought
 Requires 20 to 30 oC and
300 to 400 mm/year
 Sensitive to salinity
 Needs EC < 0.7 dS/m
 Life span: 20 to 25 years
 Height of tree: 5 to 10 m
 Small thorns: 1 to 2 cm

SpN and ILEIA Documentation

 Major benefits
 Flowers:
 As loved by bee as that of Sedr honey:
Selam Thick and brownish

 Elb/Sedr honey -
• As good as - some say
better than - that of Selam
• Cost: USD 30/liter
 Fruits
 Tihama Apple
 Suplementary food
 Mild sugary taste

SpN and ILEIA Documentation

 Major benefits
 Fruits
 Believed to cure kidney problems
• Boil fruits
• Thick juicy fluid will form
• Filter the Juicy fluid - drink at least
about 1 litre a day - you feel better in
few weeks

 Leaves and branches:

 Favourite feed for Camel
 Natural shampoo: keeps hair fresh
• Dry leaves
• Grind and throughly mix with water to
form thick green fluid
• Wash hair with the thick green fluid

SpN and ILEIA Documentation

 Major benefits

 Stem
 Strong, resistant to
termite species
 Bed legs and frame
 Yemeni people enjoy gat
(excitement plant) in
such a bed
 Farm implements
• Plough
• Spade and hoe handle
 Fishing boats
Jaafar Hassan Alawi Al-Jeffri, Director of
Agriculture and Extension Department in his
Eusha, a traditional hut where he enjoys Kat

SpN and ILEIA Documentation

 Word of Eminence

Sedr is the Selam tree to the highland inhabitants: it is

the most important contributor to their livelihood

Sedr, together with Selam, is a blessed tree in the

Kuran (Jaafar Hassan Alawi Al-Jeffri, Director of Agriculture and
Extension Department, TDA)

SpN and ILEIA Documentation

Silvadora persica
Arack tree

SpN and ILEIA Documentation

 Some basic facts

 Easy to uproot - its habitat is being

constantly encroached by agricultural
fields
 Endangered specie – estimate is less
than 3,000 ha
 Resilient to drought:
 Fourishes with RF < 150 mm/year
 Slow at regeneration
 No dominant stem
 Life span: 10 to 15 years
 Tree height: 4 -6 m
 No thorns

SpN and ILEIA Documentation

 Major benefits

 Roots
 Natutal tooth brush
 Raw material for tooth paste
– export to Saudi Arabia
 2 cm long root costs
30 Yemeni rial
 Fruits
 Green–unripe
 Redish when ripe
 Hot, spicy
 Supplied with almost every
dish

SpN and ILEIA Documentation

 Major benefits

 Tree as a whole
 Effective in stoping sand dunes
 Labelled as second best (first
being Haleg) defence belt against
sand dunes in the Munira village
trial by the TDA Agricultural and
Extension Department (see
elaboration on slide 26)

SpN and ILEIA Documentation

 Words of appreciation

 Profet Mohamed, may peace and prayers of Alah be upon

him, said:
“If I am not bothering you too much, I would ask you to
brush your teeth (using Arack) five times – that is before
each prayer time”

SpN and ILEIA Documentation

Balanites aegyptica
Haleg

SpN and ILEIA Documentation

 Some basic facts

 Native to mountainous areas

 20 to 30 oC, 300 to 450 mm/year
 Performed well in the arid Munira Village
(trial by Agriculture and Extension
Department, TDA)
 > 35 oC, 100 to 200 mm/year
 Moderate regenation ability

 Moderately tolerant to salinity

 Dominant strong stem
 Life span: 20 to 25 years
 Maximum height: 5 - 10 m
 length of thorns: 5 – 8 cm

SpN and ILEIA Documentation

 Major benefits

 Stem
 Strongest and heaviest
(Sedr ranks 2nd)
 Best for traditional beds (slide 15) and
traditional house poles
 Best for fishing boats (Sedr is second
best)
 Leaves and branches
 Good Camel feed (Sedr is best, slide 14)
 Fruits
One of the typical highland village huts,
 Small egg shaped all poles are from Haleg
 Suppemtary food for children
 High protein content

SpN and ILEIA Documentation

 Major benefits

 Though native to highland

areas, survived drought
and proved to be the best
sand dune defence in
Munira Village (Arack is
second best, slide 20)

SpN and ILEIA Documentation

 Munira town gets life: thanks to Haleg & Arack
 Abondoned Munira Village houses due
to sand dune
 10 years back

 Revival of abondoned houses

after 12 lines of Arak and Haleg
defence against sand dune
Notice 3 layers in the wall – top layer
 Task competed by TDA 3 years
constructed in the past 3 years – still ago
little buried by sand dune

SpN and ILEIA Documentation

 Hyphaene thebaica
Nehal (Date Palm) tree

SpN and ILEIA Documentation

 Some basic facts

 Habitat: coastal area

 Irrigation: September to March
 Irrigation gift: 30 to 50 litres
 Interval: 3 to 4 weeks
 Fruit setting period: April to August
 Irrigation stops
 Population has dwindled
 5 million trees (1970)
 2 million trees (2005)
 Wadis reacch tree habitat less
frequently now than 30 years ago
 Groundwater table:
< 5 m (1970); > 40 m (2005)

SpN and ILEIA Documentation

 Some basic facts

 Moderatelly tolerant to salinity

 Growndwater EC: 1.5 to 2 dS/m
 Moderately sensitive to drought
 Fruits become small and less fluidy if
irrigation turn is 5 to 6 weeks
 No fruit setting if irrigation turn is 8 or
more weeks
 Height of tree: 20 to 30 m
 Life span: 40 to 60 years

SpN and ILEIA Documentation

 Major benefits

 Fruits
 Suplementary food: common in
romodan (Isalamic fasting period)
 Date palm honey
• Debs: general arabic term
• Kitara:local Tihama arabic word –
slow continous drops

SpN and ILEIA Documentation

 Major benefits
 Complete construction of
a village house

 Special Date Palm baskets

 1 basket: USD 0.2

SpN and ILEIA Documentation

 Kitara traditional production system:
Documentation in Riman Village
 Spread fruit and dry it
 Traditional
• Simple spreading under date palm
tree on sorghum/millet (left over
from animal feed) layer
• Manually spearate good and bad
fruits – latter is used as fodder for
cattle, goats, sheep, camel
• Fruits dry naturally with air in 7 Bad Date
days Palm fruit

SpN and ILEIA Documentation

 Kitara traditional production system:
Documentation in Riman Village
 Improved (TDA Extension)
• Nylon covered case with
various separation
compartments
– Better selection capacity
of good or pure fruits
• Windows for fresh air entry
• Small motor to suck moisture
• Drying period: 3 days
Person operates
moisture sucking
small motor

SpN and ILEIA Documentation

 Kitara traditional production system:
Documentation in Riman Village
 Fill dried good fruits in a sack
 Pack sacks tightly on top of
one another in a small
windowless dark brick-walled
room
 Temperature: > 40 oC

 Squeezed fruits at high

temperature start dripping

SpN and ILEIA Documentation

 Kitara traditional production system:
Documentation in Riman Village

 Dripping black fluid flows on

Concrete floar and is collected in a
hole (traditional)

 Dripping black fluid is collected

through a pipe into a container
with a cloth filter on top
(improved traditional)

SpN and ILEIA Documentation

 Traditional Kitara production system

 The 170 to 200 sacks stay

packed for 3 months
 Final product: Nice black
Date Palm Honey
 Honey is usually collected
in 5 liter jerican
 The honey is commonly
Father Hussien,
sold in a 0.75 liter bottle expert in date-Palm
Honey production in
 1 liter costs: USD 5 to 7.5 Riman Village

SpN and ILEIA Documentation

 Word of Appreciation
 Date Palm is a major source of
livelihood for coastal people –
should be protected against wild Date Palm Honey
cutting by unskilled hand-craft Factory house in
Riman Village
persons
 Date Palm honey is better than
Almaraey (shepeherd) honey –
honey produced when bees feed
on flowers from variety of trees.
 The above are words of Father
Hussien (seen on the right in
bottom picture) – lots of thanks to
him for explaining the production of
date plam honey

SpN and ILEIA Documentation

Dome (coconut) Tree

SpN and ILEIA Documentation

 Some basic facts

 Costal area plant, tolerant to salinity

 EC > 2.5 dS/m
 Poor in regeneration
 Land coverage significantly reduced
 2 miilion trees in 1970
 0.5 million in 2005
 Relentlessly cut for various hand craft
materials
 Groundwater (major source of water) table
lowered from 2 - 5m (1970) to > 35 m
(2005)
 Moderately tolerant to drought
 Dominat stem
 Height of tree: 15 to 30 m

SpN and ILEIA Documentation

 Major benefits
 Fruits
 supplementary food
 Top hard and rough layer is
removed by colliding two fruits or
using a stone
 Layer beneath the cover is stif but
delciious, it is eaten raw
 Interiror layer is a hard shell ,
childred use it for a swirling ball
game.
 Leaves
 Various hand crafts
• Shopping baskets
• Prayer mat
• Bed sheets
• Sun protection hut
SpN and ILEIA Documentation
 Major benefits

 Khel – Vinegar
 Salad dressing
Note:
 Soup
Actual Photo/Video
 Procedure to make Khel documentation can be
 Make a cut at the juncture between stem done in March/April
and leaves when Khel is actually
 Tie a container just below the cut to collect being produced
continously dripping thin liquid
 Add yeast to the liquid and let it stay for 40
days - it becomes strongly alcoholic with a
flavour of vinegar
 Dilute it with an equal volume of water
 Usually sold in small bottles (0.3 l)
for USD 5 per bottle

SpN and ILEIA Documentation

Tamarix
Athel

SpN and ILEIA Documentation

 Some basic facts

 Resilient to drought:
 RF < 150 mm/year
 Temperature > 35 oC
 Moderately tolerant to salinity
 Poor regeneration capacity
 Dominant stem
 Height of tree: 5 to 15 m
 Life span: 15 to 25 years

SpN and ILEIA Documentation

 Major benefits

 Fence for agricultura area

 Perfect good looking hut roofs

SpN and ILEIA Documentation

Debora glabra
Daber

SpN and ILEIA Documentation

 Some basic facts

 Sensitive to drought
 RF: 300 to 450 mm/year
 Temperature < 30 oC
 Sensitive to salinity
 Very slow in regeneration
 Dominant stem
 Height of tree: 10 m to 15 m
 Lifespan: 50 to 70 years

SpN and ILEIA Documentation

 Major benefits

 Stem
 Hole is drilled – store for farm
implements and farmers’ lunch
 Hole can be easily drilled
• Takes maximum 1 hour
• Outer layer (3 to 5 cm ) is
strong and stiff
• Inner part is soft
 Fire wood
 Usualy dry old branches are
collected

SpN and ILEIA Documentation

 Word of significance

 Daber is persumably the

oldest tree
 It is long living tree
 Have been playing under the
shade of this tree since I was a
kid. (words of the old father in
the picture)
 Daber is a home away from
home for farmers

SpN and ILEIA Documentation

 Avicennia marina
mangrove (Shura)

SpN and ILEIA Documentation

 Some basic facts

 Inhabits the Red Sea

Shores
 Very tolerant to salinity
 EC > 4 dS/m
 High regeneration capacity
 No dominant stem
 Max. plant height: 1 m

SpN and ILEIA Documentation

 Major benefits

 Best feed for camel

 Habitat for migrant birds

SpN and ILEIA Documentation

With Special Acknowledgements to

Jaafar Hassan Alawi Al-Jeffri

Director, Agriculture and Extension Department
Tihama Development Authroity
REPUBLIC OF YEMEN

SpN and ILEIA Documentation