Aquilaria Sinensis is by no means rare in Hong Kong. In Dunn and Tutcher's Flora of Kwangtung and Hong Kong which was published in 1912, it was stated that in a one-acre plot of fung shui woodland in the lower ground of Hong Kong, 31 out of 125 trees enumerated were Aquilaria sinensis (then known as Aquilaria grandiflora). Even today it would not be difficult to find this tree in various parts of Hong Kong. They usually occur in natural woodland on lower hill slopes and in fung shui woods behind villages. There are good specimens in Tai Po Kau Nature Reserve, Ng Tung Chai in Lam Tsuen, and Pak Tam Chung, Sai Kung.
The publication of Professor Lo's book generated some local interest in the Incense Tree. In the 1960's and 1970's, both the Urban Services and Agriculture & Fisheries Departments planted a number of these trees in public gardens and on hill slopes. Seed supply is in abundance and there is no difficulty in raising young trees in the nursery. However, when planted out in open sites, the survival rate is disappointingly low. Moreover, the tree is quite slow-growing and is rather susceptible to wind damage. A seedling of half a metre high planted in Kowloon Tsai Park in 1974 reached a height of only 3.2 metre in 10 years. Even when planted in mixture with other tree species in plantation conditions the species fared little better. On this basis, A. sinensis is unlikely ever to rival the more robust and fast growing species which now commonly occur in our parks and countryside.
Notwithstanding its growth habits, the local historical significance of the Incense Tree has been well recognised. As a matter of interest, the cultivation of the Incense Tree has been used as the main theme in the information displays in the Aberdeen Country Park Visitor Centre. Visitors to the centre, in addition to learning of the interesting historical events concerning this tree, can take the opportunity to have a close look at several live specimens growing by the side of the entrance.