Legume Tree Billy Webb (Acosmium panamensis) good for diabetes, dry cough and fever.

By Liliana Usvat
Blog 201-365

The species is part of the evergreen tropical forests

The hard, durable wood of this tree is used in heavy construction, and to make such household items as washing tubs, breadboards and mortar sticks.

The bitter-tasting bark is used as a remedy for coughs and fever. It is the main ingredient in "Sweet Blood", one of the Rain forest Remedies bottled by Ix Chel Farms, which is good for diabetes, dry cough and low appetite.
 
Oral application of water extracts at doses of 20 and 200 mg/kg and of butanol extracts at doses of 20 and 100 mg/kg significantly lowered the plasma glucose levels in diabetic rats within 3 h. Glibenclamide was used as reference and showed similar hypoglycemic effect like the extracts.

Three structurally new compounds were isolated from the plant and shown to be the main constituents in both extracts.

 

Ecological Restoration

New Root supports the ecological restoration of degraded ecosystems. We value the careful study of local forests to ensure that we are actually restoring the land to be a functional ecosystem that supports biodiversity. 

To do so, it is imperative to use native species. Where possible, we encourage the use of natural regeneration, which allows forests to replant themselves. In some cases this is difficult due to an absence of seed dispersing animals or due to the degraded state of the soil. In such cases it is necessary for people to plant seedlings. 

 Depending on the land, these include nitrogen fixing trees such as Gliricidia sepium, fruit trees that attract animals such as Dialium guianense, trees that have medicinal uses such as Acosmium panamense, trees that bind soil to prevent erosion such as Persea americana, and a number of large trees that sequester remarkable amounts of carbon such as Cedrela odorata. In some forests it is possible to find over 100 species on a single hectare.

Legume tree species, which are abundant in tropical dry forests, may be a critical regulator of soil nutrient dynamics because of their high foliar nitrogen (N) and potential for symbiotic N fixation.  

The legume tree species (Acosmium panamense, Dalbergia retusa, and Gliricidia sepium) have distinct soil chemistry under their crowns compared to nearby non-legume species (Rehdera trinervis, Swietenia macrophylla, and Quercus oleoides) when grown in two habitats.

Acosmium had the highest values for total soil C and N, labile C, and potential N mineralization rates.

Forests Versus Land

By Liliana Usvat
Blog 200-365

When prolonged drought  people remember to plant trees and forests.
Countries with large deserts have less water.
At this moment there are know how to transform deserts in Forests.
The technique name is Permaculture. And is proven to be functional.

Some countries remembers that the attention you pay to the forestation is in direct relation with the amount of rein it receives and the well being of the people.

Planet, continents and regions

Region	Forested area (km2)		% of land area
World	39,000,000		26.19%
Polar regions (Russia, Scandinavia and North America)	13,800,000
Latin America and the Caribbean	9,640,000		45.67%
East Asia and the Pacific	7,332,000		35.18%
Africa	6,500,000		21.80%
Canada and the United States	4,680,000		26.00%
European Union	1,600,000		35.00%
Australia	1,470,832		19.00%
West Asia (Middle East and Arabia)	36,600		01.00%

The extent, and type of land use directly affects wildlife habitat and thereby impacts local and global biodiversity. Human alteration of landscapes from natural vegetation (e.g. wilderness) to any other use typically results in habitat loss, degradation, and fragmentation, all of which can have devastating effects on biodiversity. Land conversion is the single greatest cause of extinction of terrestrial species


Rates and causes of deforestation vary from region to region around the world. In 2009, 2/3 of the world forests were in 10 top countries: 1) Russia, 2) Brazil, 3) Canada, 4) United States, 5) China, 6) Australia, 7) Congo, 8) Indonesia, 9) Peru and 10) India.

World annual deforestation is estimated as 13.7 million hectares a year, equal to the area of Greece. Only half of this area is compensated by new forests or forest growth. In addition to directly human-induced deforestation, the growing forests have also been affected by climate change, increasing risks of storms, and diseases.

Canada

In 2005, an estimated 56,000 hectares were deforested in Canada. Deforestation affected less than 0.02% of Canada’s forests in 2005. The agricultural sector accounted for just over half of the deforestation in 2005, the result of forests having been cleared for pasture or crops. The remainder was caused by urban development, transportation corridors, and recreation (19%); hydroelectric development (10%); the forest sector (10%); and other natural resource extraction industries (8%). About two thirds of this deforestation occurred in Canada’s boreal forest, mainly in Alberta, Saskatchewan, and Manitoba where the forest borders the Prairies

In Canada, prior to 2000, less than 8% of the boreal forest was protected from development and more than 50% has been allocated to logging companies for cutting

United States

Prior to the arrival of European-Americans, roughly half of the land area of the present-day United States was forest—about 4,000,000 square kilometres (990,000,000 acres) in 1600. For the next 300 years land was cleared, mostly for agriculture, at a rate that matched the rate of population growth. For every person added to the population, one to two hectares of land was cultivated. 

This trend continued until the 1920s when the amount of crop land stabilized in spite of continued population growth. As abandoned farmland reverted to forest, the amount of forestland increased from 1952, reaching a peak in 1963 of 3,080,000 square kilometres (760,000,000 acres). Since 1963 there has been a steady decrease of forest area with the exception of some gains from 1997.

Nigera

According to the FAO, Nigeria has the world's highest deforestation rate of primary forests. It has lost more than half of its primary forest in the last five years. Causes cited are logging, subsistence agriculture, and the collection of fuel wood. Almost 90% of West Africa's rainforest has been destroyed.

Romania

A high percentage (47% of the land area) of the country is covered with natural and semi-natural ecosystems. Since almost half of all forests in Romania (13% of the country) have been managed for watershed conservation rather than production, Romania has one of the largest areas of undisturbed forest in Europe. The integrity of Romanian forest ecosystems is indicated by the presence of the full range of European forest fauna, including 60% and 40% of all European brown bears and wolves, respectively. 

Germany

In Germany, reforestation is required as part of the federal forest law. 31% of Germany is forested, according to the second forest inventory of 2001–2003. The size of the forest area in Germany increased between the first and the second forest inventory due to forestation of degenerated bogs and agricultural areas. 

China

In China, extensive replanting programs have existed since the 1970s. Programs have had overall success. The forest cover has increased from 12% of China's land area to 16%. However, specific programs have had limited success. The "Green Wall of China", an attempt to limit the expansion of the Gobi Desert is planned to be 2,800 miles (4,500 km) long and to be completed in 2050.  

The Most Re-Forested Global Countries

Country Continent(s) km2 Forested - 1990 km2 Forested - 2007 % Change 1 Bahrain Asia 2 5 +150.0 2 Iceland Europe 250 492 +96.8 3 Uruguay South America 9,050 15,448 +70.7 4 Tunisia Africa 6,430 10,948 +70.3 5 Rwanda Africa 3,180 5,344 +68.1 6 Lesotho Africa 50 84 +68.0 7 Kuwait Asia 35 58 +65.7 8 Egypt Asia 440 702 +59.5 9 Ireland, Republic of Europe 4,410 6,930 +57.1 10 Cape Verde Africa 578 845 +46.2 11 Vietnam Asia 93,630 134,134 +43.3 12 Spain Europe 134,790 185,066 +37.3 13 Cuba North America 20,580 28,242 +37.2 14 Samoa Oceania 1,300 1,710 +31.5 15 China Asia 1,571,410 2,054,056 +30.7 16 Algeria Africa 17,898 23,299 +30.2 17 United Arab Emirates Asia 2,450 3,128 +27.7 18 Syria Asia 3,720 4,726 +27.0 19 Portugal Europe 30,990 38,630 +24.7 20 Italy Europe 83,830 101,918 +21.6 21 Swaziland Africa 4,720 5,504 +16.6 22 Greece Europe 32,990 38,124 +15.6 23 St. Vincent & Grenadines North America 95 109 +14.7 24 Lebanon Asia 1,210 1,387 +14.6 25 Denmark Europe 4,450 5,056 +13.6 26 Israel Asia 1,540 1,738 +12.9 27 Bulgaria Europe 33,270 37,250 +12.0 28 Hungary Europe 18,010 20,036 +11.2 29 United Kingdom Europe 26,110 28,658 +9.8 30 Lithuania Europe 19,450 21,306 +9.5 31 Uzbekistan Asia 30,450 33,282 +9.3 32 Cyprus, Republic of Asia / Europe 1,611 1,750 +8.6 33 New Zealand Oceania 77,200 83,422 +8.1 34 France Europe 145,380 156,352 +7.5 35 Gambia Africa 4,420 4,750 +7.5 36 Slovenia Europe 11,880 12,745 +7.3 37 Belarus Europe 73,760 79,124 +7.3 38 Palau Oceania 380 406 +6.8 39 Latvia Europe 27,750 29,634 +6.8 40 Switzerland Europe 11,550 12,298 +6.5 41 Netherlands Europe 3,450 3,670 +6.4 42 Chile South America 152,630 162,358 +6.4 43 Estonia Europe 21,630 23,004 +6.4 44 Liechtenstein Europe 65 69 +6.2 45 Bhutan Asia 30,350 32,166 +6.0 46 India Asia 639,390 677,598 +6.0 47 Turkey Asia / Europe 96,800 102,242 +5.6 48 Kyrgyzstan Asia 8,360 8,737 +4.5 49 Poland Europe 88,810 92,452 +4.1 50 Cook Islands Oceania 149 155 +4.0 51 Ukraine Europe 92,740 96,010 +3.5 52 Moldova Europe 3,190 3,302 +3.5 53 Norway Europe 91,300 94,214 +3.2 54 Germany Europe 107,410 110,760 +3.1 55 Austria Europe 37,760 38,716 +2.5 56 Iraq Asia 8,040 8,236 +2.4 57 Fiji Oceania 9,790 10,000 +2.1 58 Ivory Coast Africa 102,220 104,358 +2.1 59 Morocco Africa 42,890 43,784 +2.1 60 Albania Europe 7,890 8,040 +1.9 61 United States North America 2,986,480 3,034,070 +1.6 62 Finland Europe 221,940 225,100 +1.4 63 Puerto Rico North America 4,040 4,084 +1.1 64 Croatia Europe 21,160 21,374 +1.0 65 Luxembourg Europe 860 868 +0.9 66 Czech Republic Europe 26,300 26,524 +0.9 67 Sweden Europe 273,670 275,496 +0.7 68 Micronesia Oceania 630 634 +0.6 69 Slovakia Europe 19,220 19,322 +0.5 70 Tajikistan Asia 4,080 4,100 +0.5

Global Countries With No Change In Overall Forested Area Between 1990 & 2007

Country Continent(s) km2 Forested in both 1990 & 2007  Andorra Europe 160 Anguilla North America 55 Antigua & Barbuda North America 94 Aruba North America 4 Azerbaijan Asia / Europe 9,360 Bahamas North America 5,150 Barbados North America 17 Belize North America 16,530 Bermuda North America 10 British Virgin Islands North America 37 Canada North America 3,101,340 Cayman Islands North America 124 Channel Islands Europe 8 Djibouti Africa 56 Dominican Republic North America 13,760 Faroe Islands Europe 1 Falkland Islands South America 0 French Polynesia Oceania 1,050 Georgia Asia / Europe 27,600 Gibraltar Europe 0 Greenland North America 2 Guam Oceania 259 Guyana South America 151,040 Iran Asia 110,750 Isle of Man Europe 35 Jordan Asia 830 Kiribati Oceania 22 Libya Africa 2,170 Macedonia Europe 9,060 Maldives Asia 9 Malta Europe 3 Martinique North America 465 Montserrat North America 35 Nauru Oceania 0 Netherlands Antilles North America 12 New Caledonia Oceania 7,170 Oman Asia 20 Palestine Asia 90 Pitcairn Oceania 35 Qatar Asia 0 Romania Europe 63,710 Russia Asia / Europe 8,089,500 Saint Helena Africa 20 Saint Kitts & Nevis North America 53 Saint Lucia North America 170 Saint Pierre y Miquelon North America 30 San Marino Europe 1 Sao Tome & Principe Africa 274 Saudi Arabia Asia 27,280 Seychelles Africa 400 Singapore Asia 23 South Africa Africa 92,030 Suriname South America 147,760 Tokelau Oceania 0 Tonga Oceania 36 Turkmenistan Asia 41,270 Turks & Caicos Islands North America 344 Tuvalu Oceania 10 Vanuatu Oceania 4,395 Western Sahara Africa 10,110 Yemen Asia 5,490

 

 

Liliana Usvat: Medicinal Trees Quassia (Quassia amara ) expel parasites and reduce fever

Liliana Usvat: Medicinal Trees Quassia (Quassia amara ) expel parasites and reduce fever