<p>Scientifically called Tectona Grandis, teak is grown is countries such as Burma, Malaysia and India, apart from Africa and the Caribbean nations, where it is grown in massive quantities and exported to other nations.<br /><br />Called the ‘King of trees’, teak lasts hundreds of years. Also, it is easy to carve on its wood, and has been used in construction, furniture, ship building, and railway coach manufacturing. Consequently, this wood has a huge demand, sending its price zooming.<br /><br />Several farmers in the State have taken to teak cultivation in a big way. A farmer from Pandavapura taluk has grown 14 twenty-year-old trees on the margins of his farm and has earned an income of Rs four lakh from them.</p>.<p>Teak can be grown on all types of soil. It needs good water and sunlight to flourish. It can be grown on the boundaries of other crops, in the backyard or amidst other plantations. It is ideal for raising a forest farm.<br /><br />Realising the huge demand that teak has, the Forest Department has taken steps to raise teak saplings and distribute it among farmers. Under the NREGS scheme, the Department plants saplings on a farmer’s land. In K R Pet taluk alone, the Department has planted nearly seven lakh teak saplings in the last one year.<br /><br /><em>R Gopinath<br />Assistant Conservator of Forests, Mysore Division</em></p>
<p>Scientifically called Tectona Grandis, teak is grown is countries such as Burma, Malaysia and India, apart from Africa and the Caribbean nations, where it is grown in massive quantities and exported to other nations.<br /><br />Called the ‘King of trees’, teak lasts hundreds of years. Also, it is easy to carve on its wood, and has been used in construction, furniture, ship building, and railway coach manufacturing. Consequently, this wood has a huge demand, sending its price zooming.<br /><br />Several farmers in the State have taken to teak cultivation in a big way. A farmer from Pandavapura taluk has grown 14 twenty-year-old trees on the margins of his farm and has earned an income of Rs four lakh from them.</p>.<p>Teak can be grown on all types of soil. It needs good water and sunlight to flourish. It can be grown on the boundaries of other crops, in the backyard or amidst other plantations. It is ideal for raising a forest farm.<br /><br />Realising the huge demand that teak has, the Forest Department has taken steps to raise teak saplings and distribute it among farmers. Under the NREGS scheme, the Department plants saplings on a farmer’s land. In K R Pet taluk alone, the Department has planted nearly seven lakh teak saplings in the last one year.<br /><br /><em>R Gopinath<br />Assistant Conservator of Forests, Mysore Division</em></p>
