INTRODUCTION
Main Non-Wood Forest Products
The most important non-wood forest products (NWFP) of Jordan are edible products such as mushrooms (e.g. Boletus aestivalis, Boletus aereus, Lyophyllum decastes, Lepista nuda, Cantharellus cibarius, Agaricus campestris), fruits (e.g. stonepine, carob, sumac, palm nut) and aromatic plants (eg. Laurus nobilis, Thyme).
Other NWFP include medicinal plants (Aremisia herba-alba, A. judiaca, A. monosperma, Achillia fragrantissima), reeds (Fragmyites communis) and honey.
General information
The forest administration in Jordan is aware of the importance of NWFP for the local population of its different uses for social, environmental and health purposes. That's why the forest department is dealing with the subject through the following issues (Al Wadi, 1999):
· Encouraging people to benefit of NWFP of forests free of charge and without licenses in a sustainable way;
· Collecting, handling, storing and distributing of seeds of important NWFP producing tree and shrub species through forest seed centre of department of forests;
· Giving a considerable importance for multi-purpose forest trees by producing its seedling in forests nurseries;
· Producing seeds for planting in forest areas and for farmers to be used in their lands;
· Establishing a genetic resource conservation unit in the National Center for Agricultural Research and Technology Transfer (NCARTT), which is dealing with the conservation of most important plant species;
· Conserving the resources through its sustainable use;
· Giving high priority to culinary medical and aromatic plants.
PLANTS AND PLANT PRODUCTS
Food
Many people in rural areas are dependent on forests for critical portions of their food supplies. These include food from fruits of:
· Castanopsis acuminatissima, Oak (Balout) for human and livestock consumption;
· Pistacia vera, Pistachio (Fustouk - Butum);
· Ceratonia siliqua, Carob (Kharoub);
· Ziziphus (seder);
· Pirus syriaca (Agas bari);
· Rubus (ulaik);
· Phoenix dactylifera (Tamer, Nakheel);
· Crataegus azarolus (Nabak);
· Rhus coraria (sumak);
· Olea europaea (zaytoon).
Edible mushrooms such as Boletus aestivalis, Lepista nuda, Lactarius delicious, Cantharellus cibarius, Agaricus campestris and Pleurotus eryngii are commonly collected by villagers in the Ajloun and Jerash districts (Najwa Najjab, 1996).
Fodder
Forest trees, shrubs and vegetation contribute to food security of rural population by providing fodder for livestock (see table 1). Species such as Acacia, Prosopis and Atriplex sp. are rich in protein and energy required by animals.
The land area of Jordan is about 8.93 million ha. Rangelands (100-200 mm rainfall) constitute about 91 percent of this area. Fodder production by shrubs in the wafis of the Jordanian Hamad comprised 57 percent of total vegetation in 1981 and 69 percent in 1982. These figures show the importance of fodder shrubs as a source of feed on the rangelands. Artemisia herba-alba is the main fodder shrub in the Jordan Hamad.
Forage production in some developed range reserves in the steppe was estimated at about 6-20 fold that of open rangelands. In spring 1992, native fodder shrub production at Lajjoun was about 60 kg/ha. In autumn 1992, native fodder shrub production was about 46 kg/ha.
Most of the studies concerning vegetation production on the rangelands of Jordan estimate total dry matter (DM) production. The Arab Organization For Agricultural Development (AOAD) estimates vegetative production in Jordan at about 40 kg DM/ha for the desert rangelands (<100mm average annual rainfall). The forests and marginal lands in high rainfall areas at about 300 kg DM/ha (Tadros, 1995).
Fodder shrubs in the arid rangelands in Jordan, as well as other range plants, can be divided, according to palatability, into three major categories:
· Highly palatable fodder shrubs such as Salsola vermiculata, Atriplex halimusand and Colutea istrisa.
· Moderately palatable fodder shrubs such as Artemisia herba-alba and Haloxylon artculatum.
· Unpalatable fodder shrubs such as Anabasis aphylla and peganum harmala.
According to the National Information Center (NIC), the value of fodder export in 2000 was JOD821 0004.
Medicines
About 485 species belonging to 330 genera and 99 families are recorded (Al Abbadi, 1999). The medicinal plants identified are either Herbs, shrubs or trees. Medicinal plants are distributed all over the country. With a wide range of distribution from the Eastern desert to other parts of the country, those plants are massively used by Bedouins or local people, in folk medicine as hot or cold drinks, or chewed raw materials as fresh or dry. The medicinal plants mostly used in Jordan are: Teucruim polium (jadah), Citrullus colocynthis (handhal), Artemisia herba alba (sheh), Judiaca, Monosperma (adher), Achillia fragrantissima (kaisoum), Anthemis cotula (beboneg) and Euphorbia sp..
The latex of Euphorbia species occurring in Jordan proved to be very efficient in the viral dermal infections, the warts for example, but this juice is very poisonous if taken orally or put on sensitive part, it may cause irritation.
Many plants are under collection pressure and often used for many medicinal purposes, some examples are: Artemisia, Achillea, Salvia, Paronychia, Ecballium, Ephedra, Ajuga, Marrubum, Alcea, Thymus, Sarcopoteruim, Hyoscyamus, Ricinus communis and many others.
Perfumes and Cosmetics
There is an increasing tendency to cultivate some culinary and medicinal plants in gardens and farms for home consumption and marketing since there is an increasing demand on products such as Thymus and sage.
These are the major aromatic plants used in Jordan:
· Laurus nobilis (Ghar);
· Capparis spinosa ( kubbar);
· Thymus sp. (zattar);
· Rumex sp. (homaidh);
· Portulaca olecacea (bakla);
· Rosmarinus officineles (hasalban);
· Lavandula sp. (Lavender);
· Malva sp. (khubaisa);
· Trigonella sp.;
· Salvia sp. (mairammiah);
· Simmodensia japonica (jujoba).
Ornamentals
Many wild plants in Jordan are used as ornamentals, such as Retama retaem, Ceratonia siliqua (trees); Astragalus, Cistus, Salvia, and Onions (bushes); Tulip, Orchis, Iris and Colchicum etc. (bulbs); or Cyclamen and Scorzonera (corms).
ANIMALS AND ANIMAL PRODUCTS
Honey and beeswax (Anonymous, 1992)
Beekeeping is mainly practiced in the Irbid and Amman districts; Apis mellifera syriaca is the native honey breed. Italian queens are imported.
1987 figures showed 49 000 hives (41 000 traditional, 8 000 frame hives). Traditional beekeeping is practiced in hollow clay cylinders made from mud and straw known as 'baladi'. Another type of traditional hive is made from woven bamboo.
The wild flora is rich and varied (Citrus spp., Echinops spp., Thymus vulgaris) and provides an important source of dark-coloured, sweet honey.
In frame hives, average yields are around 4 kg per colony per year, but can be up to 20 kg. A typical yield from a traditional hive is 2 kg per colony per year. In 1988 total honey yield was 120 tonnes.
Forest and wild plants are considered the main source for honeybee fodder. Fruit trees also play an important role in feeding bee in Jordan (citrus sp., echinops spp (murrar), thymus vulgaris, eucalyptus, acacia sp., robinia), and other trees, shrubs and annual plants.
Other non-edible animal products
Wild animals are a main category of food derived from the forests. Wild animals can provide a significant source of animal protein. Smaller wildlife such as rabbits and birds has real importance, while larger mammals have largely been exterminated. In Jordan, hunting is being managed by the Royal Society for the Conservation of Nature which issues annual hunting programmes specify hunting areas and game species and issue hunting licenses for hunters.
The wildlife conservation programme in Jordan is very active through:
· Wildlife reservation and regulation of hunting;
· Rangeland reservation and controlled grazing;
· Protection of forests.
REFERENCES
Anonymous. 1992. Zooming in on Jordan. Beekeeping and Development, Number 23, June 1992.
Al Wadi Al Abbadi, M. 1999.Non wood forestry products in Jordan. Expert meeting on developing and coordinating the activities for non-wood forest products, FAO. Beirut, 1999.
Najjab, N. 1996, Mushroom cultivation in forest villages, Joint FAO-Ministry Project GCP/INT/539/ITA, Forestry and Food Security in the Mediterranean and Near East Region.
National Information centre. 2000. Department of statistics. Amman, Jordan.
Ministry of Agriculture. 1997. Department of Forests and Range, Forestry and Rangeland in Jordan. Amman, Jordan.
Tadros, K. 1995. Fodder shrubs in Jordan. Low Rainfall Areas Research Program, Baqa', Jordan.
ACKNOWLEDGEMENT
This report has been realized in support to the FAO Forest Resource Assessment 2000. The content is mainly based on available information at FAO Headquarters in Rome and on information collected by Ms Sabra, American University of Beirut, Lebanon.
Additional information on NWFP in Jordan would be appreciated and duly acknowledged.
QUANTITATIVE DATA ON NWFP OF JORDAN
Product |
Resource |
Economic value |
||||||||
Category |
Importance |
Trade name Generic term |
Species |
Part used |
Habitat |
Source |
Destination |
Quantity, value |
Remarks |
References |
1, 2, 3 |
F, P, O |
W, C |
N, I |
|||||||
Plants and plant products | ||||||||||
Fodder |
1 |
Salsola vermiculata, Atriplex halimusand Colutea istrisa. Artemisia herba-alba Haloxylon artculatum. Anabasis aphylla peganum harmala. |
F |
W |
Export worth JOD821 000 in 1999 |
NIC, 2000 | ||||
Dying, Tanning |
Total export worth JOD19 000 in 1999 |
NIC, 2000 | ||||||||
Exudates |
Total export worth JOD9 765 in 1999 |
NIC, 2000 | ||||||||
Animals and animal products | ||||||||||
Honey, beeswax |
2 |
Honey |
Apis mellifera syriaca |
Whole |
W C |
N |
Production of 120 tonnes in 1988 |
Beekeeping and Development, 1992 |
Importance: 1- high importance on the national level; 2 - high importance on the local/regional level; 3 - low importance
Part used: an - entire animal; ba - bark; bw - beeswax; le - leaves; nu - nuts; fi - fibres; fl - flowers; fr - fruits; gu - gums; ho - honey; la - latex; oi - oil; pl - entire plant; re - resins; ro - roots; sa - sap; se - seeds; st - stem; ta - tannins
Habitat: F - natural forest or other wooded lands; P - plantation; O - Others: Trees outside forests (e.g. agroforestry, homegardens)
Source: W - wild, C - cultivated
Destination: N - national; I - international
4 1 Jordanian Dinar = US$1.4 (exchange rate of 14 August 2001).