State Tree of Assam and How to Grow it

Wondering what the State Tree of Assam is? If you don’t have any idea, then this article will give you all the details and information!

Do you know that every state in India has a tree it recognizes as an important part of the ecosystem? If you live in the Northeast region of India and want to know about the State Tree of Assam, then keep reading!

State Tree of Assam and How to Grow it?

The official State Tree of Assam is Hollong Tree. It is native to the regions of China and India, along with several other countries. The species grows beautifully and naturally in the northeast and is distributed in the alluvial deposits of Brahmaputra valley in Assam (Upper Assam), Arunachal Pradesh, and Nagaland.

The Hollong Tree can grow upto a height of 60-80 feet with an impressive diameter of 3-4 feet in its natural growing conditions. Native people also use its woods in various ways to make furniture and other items.

It is quite easy to propagate using stem cuttings. However, it can be a time-consuming process, so it would be a good idea to get a well-grown plant from a nursery.

Botanical Name: Dipterocarpus retusus

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Hollong Tree Benefits

According to various studies, the Assam state tree has immense potential in storing terrestrial carbon besides its domestic uses and other economic benefits.
The valuable medium hardwood is popular in the construction of houses and internal construction work. It is the most suitable species for the plywood industry.
The indigenous community in northeast India uses the Hollong for fuelwood, insect repellent, and extracting oleoresins, a popular lubricant.

Initiatives by the Government to Conserve State Tree of Assam

Overexploitation of these species and habitat degradation have only restricted these trees in virgin forest patches. There has been a notable reduction of about 50 to 70% of the population of these trees in the last 10000 years.

Due to this depletion in the population, the IUCN (International Union for Conservation of Nature) declared it an Endangered species on The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. Assam and Arunachal Pradesh Governments announced this tree as the State Tree to revive the threatened species and protect their natural habitats.

In the context of Assam, some protected areas like Dehing Patkai Wildlife Sanctuary and Hollongpar Gibbon Wildlife Sanctuary are some of the natural habitats of the Hollong trees.

Government and non-government agencies have initiated awareness campaigns among common people and introduced community-based conservation action plans for the conservation of Hollong Tree.