Namaskaram!
In earlier times, if multiple copies of a book had to be made, it had to be copied manually. Modern printing equipment is only 500 years old. Printing and gunpowder were invented at nearly the same time. The moveable types came from China. Until then, we had only hand-written copies. Here, until 200 years back, we had palm leaf manuscripts, and when the matter contained in them had to be copied, mistakes invariably crept in. The first and the second copies may be relatively error-free, but the third might contain errors, like “brain” becoming “bran”.
This is what is happening to Miyawaki forests now. Some people try to reduce their investment, or try to set up a Miyawaki forest on their own. As a result, many of the Miyawaki forests we see today are a far cry from the original model. The reason I mention this is that I regularly get a lot of requests for help to set up Miyawaki forests. To most, we say that we do not do it. That is because they have no idea about the cost involved. Many people ask us whether we can set up a Miyawaki forest in one acre of land. If we were to do it scientifically, the cost for 43,000 sq. ft would come to one crore sixty lakh rupees. Maybe, the amount will be lesser when the work is done in bulk. Besides, we will have to leave spaces in between for walkways. However, the cost will definitely be upwards of one crore rupees.
Actually speaking, we need not set up a forest over the entire one-acre plot. Covering ten or fifteen cents of plot will be enough. If we cover fifteen cents by putting up Miyawaki forests in three-cent pieces in different parts of that plot, that should be enough to bring out a significant change in the atmosphere. But to put up a forest in fifteen cents will itself cost Rs 25-30 lakhs. That is roughly the cost of constructing a house. So, one must be prepared to make such an investment. Having money is not enough. One has to be totally convinced about its usefulness. But most people do not have that conviction. That is the reason why we turn down most requests for help with putting up Miyawaki forests.
But we see problems in many places. The other day a Corporation Mayor told me with absolute confidence how she got Employment Guarantee workers to plant saplings close together, and how she was in the process of setting up one such Miyawaki forest in each ward. I saw two of those forests. They looked pathetic. That is because merely by planting trees close to one another, one cannot create a Miyawaki forest. There are certain scientific principles to follow. I have explained them several times.
Builders like Asset Homes do it very professionally by following all the principles very strictly. They have put up Miyawaki forests in front of all their three apartment blocks. We ourselves made one at Kudappanakkunnu. That has come up really well in a four-cent plot.
Therefore, if anyone is interested, you may please note the number that is shown on the screen. The forest will be created according to the principles mandated by Prof. Miyawaki. Admittedly, it is an expensive project. The cost comes to Rs 400 per square feet. Only those of you who are prepared to invest so much may contact the person concerned. The rest may study from the video, and plant a Miyawaki forest on your own. If you watch the video carefully, you will be able to avoid the mistakes you may have committed now.
Many measures adopted in order to reduce expenditure will lead to problems. So, please set aside some money before you start this afforestation project. What you need to do is instead of putting up a forest over the entire plot, do it in a small area, according to the money at your disposal. Perhaps you can think of having a Miyawaki forest in 200- or 400- sq. foot area. And do it as thoroughly as possible. By ‘thoroughly’ I mean this. You see a lot of pictures now, don’t you? These are snapshots of the insects taken from the Miyawaki forest I put up at Puliyarakonam. I have a collection of photographs which show 135 different types of insects. What this means is that if we plant different plants or rose shrubs and spray insecticides, even spiders and grasshoppers will be hard to spot. That is because all the poisons will kill them too.
There is the concept of the food web. All the insects are part of the food web. One is a prey for another. One predator is another’s prey. That is the way a food web works. We get all the required nutrients from the food we eat. But if we grow the plants in a polyhouse, we will not get all the elements. There is the issue of microbes. But that is a complex subject. I shall do a separate video on it later.
All these insects that you saw just now are present all around us. They do not have a safe haven where they can exist. But a question that may arise naturally is: If all these insects appear, won’t they destroy all the plants? Not all the plants will get destroyed. Maybe one or two leaves of all the plants and trees will get eaten. If you plant a Miyawaki forest, insects will come. But bigger insects will appear too and eat them up.
Many of you must have seen the film A Bug’s Life, a very famous animation movie, produced by Steve Jobs, the founder of Apple Computers. It depicts the world of insects, and the competition among various insects. Eventually, a small bird flies in and gobbles up the master-bully grasshopper.
The leaves of our plants are eaten by the larvae of butterflies which in turn are eaten by birds. If the insects ate up all the leaves of the plants and trees, there wouldn’t be a single tree in Puliyarakonam with a leaf on it. Here, we a lot of insects. But all the leaves look healthy. Even during this summer season, all the plants carry plenty of leaves.
Therefore, if you can create a Miyawaki forest in a corner of your plot, following all the principles, you will be reap the benefits. Do it yourself. If you can’t do it on your own but are prepared to spend money, you may call this number we show you. They will come to your plot and do it in a scientific manner. I get many queries regarding this. In fact, 8 out of 10 calls I get are enquiries about the agency that will undertake this afforestation project. That is why we are displaying this phone number publicly.