Right now, I’m standing in the midst of a Miyawaki forest in order to show you a stage in its growth. This was set up on 29 January this year, in celebration of Prof. Miyawaki’s birthday, in the backyard of the Chalai School in Thiruvananthapuram. The project was sponsored by Kerala Development Innovation and Strategy Council (K-DISC) and executed jointly by three institutions - Nature’s Green Guardian Foundation, Invis Multimedia and Culture Shoppe. Two of Prof. Miyawaki’s students – Prof. Box and Prof. Fujiwara Kazue – were witness to the event. Prof. Miyawaki came online that day, and addressed the school students.
Today is 23 October, just seven days short of nine months since the forest was created. So this is the growth recorded in nine months. When we show you stock shots of the saplings planted on that day, you’ll get a clearer idea of the growth rate. This is the crucial difference between a natural forest and a Miyawaki forest. Some trees have shot up 15 feet into the air. The average height is 10 feet in nine months. That is, more than three metres in height in a year.
Earlier, this area was a wilderness, and had to be cleared. The mulching you see is largely from the leaves falling from the trees. Another peculiarity is that you will not see uniform growth of the plants. We planted 1,600 saplings in a ten-cent plot. In course of time, many will die, many others will grow a little, and the rest will shoot up in a healthy manner. In 50 years’ time, more than 50 % of the original will remain. We planted saplings of 100 species here. According to the Miyawaki Model, inclusion of merely 30 species is enough to simulate a natural forest. Most of the trees are indigenous. A few are exotic, like the Miracle fruit tree. The reason is that this region is right in the heart of the city, which has no provision for birds to perch and eat. So if we offer that facility, birds and butterflies will begin to come to the school premises. Already we see small bees and insects flying here. In this manner, we can create an opportunity for children to interact with Nature.
A couple of other features should also be noted. Although this is a Miyawaki forest, there is pest attack. But there is no need to worry because members of one species will eat those of the other. Most pests are actually the larvae of butterflies. Look at this tree, perhaps a member of the Bridelia species. Almost all its leaves have been eaten. This Indian rosewood is growing well but some insect has eaten most of its leaves. The same applies to many other trees. But this is not a serious problem. The trees are growing taller and putting out new leaves. Here a spider, maybe a non-venomous type, has made its web, and that will catch a few insects. In other words, the forest is creating its own atmosphere. This Miyawaki Model has thus created a natural platform for learning.
One point we admit is the relatively high cost of establishing a Miyawaki forest. In Kerala, it comes to Rs 300-390 per sq. ft. The main reason is the one-metre thick mulch layer – a mixture of cow dung powder, coir pith, soil and materials – that has been laid not merely at the base of each sapling but spread over the entire area. The second reason is the sturdy fence we have put up around the Miyawaki plot. Otherwise, people will dump waste materials inside it. If you observe closely, you’ll see a mesh of wires, at a height of six-and-a-half feet from the ground. This new support system, over and above the individual stakes, is to prevent the trees from toppling over. These are all the factors that hike the initial cost. If you put up a Miyawaki forest in your plot, this fence may not be required because you may already have a compound wall. That will bring down the cost considerably. We had to pay for loading and unloading but you may not face that. Thus, you may have to spend only Rs 100 or Rs 150 on one sq. ft to execute what we got done with Rs 390.
We have taken these video shots from the Chalai School in order to give you an idea of the growth rate of a Miyawaki forest. We shall show you more visuals of the forest after six or eight months. Let me also touch upon the quality of the soil here. This was a low-lying field once, and much of the soil is sand, the type that is excellent for construction work. It is here that we have planted all these trees.