Written at a time when the Thai Royal Forest Department was just beginning to implement social forestry projects to combat deforestation, the author argued that Buddhist monks were important agents of tree management who could be given greater support by government forestry projects. Their tradition of planting and protecting trees around their temples had often enriched local forests, which were respected by local villagers but suffered from uncertain tenure in the eyes of the law. Furthermore, their close contact with villagers made monks good candidates for social forestry facilitators.