Namaskaram!
From the time we started putting up Miyawaki forests here, many people have been telling us that they have only a small plot and there are already trees growing in it. So, the question is whether it is possible to have a Miyawaki forest among the trees. If the trees in your plot are coconut palms, it may pose a problem because pruning the leaves is not advisable. But if the trees belong to other varieties, it is possible to prune the branches. We will show you a model here.
This is a small plot. Recently, I created small Miyawaki forests in these small plots you see here. There are already a few trees in this plot – a wild jack, an Indian rosewood, a red lucky seed tree, an Ashoka and a cashew tree. With these four trees standing here, the shade is rather thick. The leaves don’t permit sunlight to fall on the ground. So, we cut down the crest of the trees, leaving them practically without any leaves. From the scientific point of view, the trunks have to be cut at an angle of 45 degrees so that when water falling on it will flow off immediately. Here, however, it was done horizontally but no harm came to the trees because when they were chopped, the rains had not come.
Most people fear that if trees are cut during summer, they will wither away. The tree I cut first was the red lucky seed tree. Many leaves sprouted from below, almost immediately. I was so surprised that I posted a photo of it on facebook. A friend of mine responded that there was nothing to be surprised about because trees will produce new leaves in profusion if they are pruned in summer. So, we tried it out on the curry leaf tree. It was my friend Ajith Kumar from Kilimanoor who inspired us to do it. We cut the crests of all our curry leaf trees here during this summer, and soon new sprouts appeared on all of them. We did this in February.
Gathering strength from this experience, we chopped the tops of these trees, and decided to put up a forest here, below them. They were cut three weeks or one month back. No leaves sprouted until a month passed. Now they will begin to grow well and regain their former shape. It may take a year or two for the leaves to come on top and the branches to grow. By that time, the Miyawaki forest we put up in between will grow and form the lower layer. It will take quite some time for them to reach the height of the other trees. Here, we did not cut the Indian rosewood. We had pruned the Indian rosewood in the upper plot earlier. We left this alone this time because pruning it will not make any significant difference here. This tree does not have thick foliage. Its leaves are small. So, they permit sunlight to fall on the ground. Besides, it is very tall and does not come in the way of the plants shooting up.
We pruned the rest and new sprouts have started appearing. The Miyawaki trees below are also growing. This is a method that you too can follow. Cut and remove the branches. February is the best month for this. You can do it in May too. Now, the rains are about to come. But when you prune during summer, new shoots will appear immediately. I haven’t tried pruning in May. I have done it only once before, I think. So, prepare a raised mud platform between these pruned trees, mix cow dung and coir pith in the soil, and plant saplings. They will grow up well. The older trees will form the upper layer of the forest. This video was made in order to remove your doubts on this subject.