It is raining ‘green’ drives. A visual treat of towering palm trees bordering a landscape dotted with red hibiscus blooms,clusters of pink oleanders, red ixoras, and white crepe jasmine flowers will soon unfold along the water bodies located on the Thiruvallur-Chennai-Chidambaram Highway.
In another development, the Raynal Lake in Karnataka that witnessed invasive weeds has had a makeover with native trees like neem, pungania, Arjuna and Ashoka, all regularly watered and taken care of. A 60-acre site in the Nilgiris with two streams and a tea estate, is being restored to its original shola and grassland ecosystem with native grasses and shrubs. All these projects, backed by corporates, focus on creating mindful green spaces with trees that have been growing in the region for thousands of years.
“It’s a heartening trend. A number of corporates are approaching environmentalists to make their green drives count. One way of doing this is by leaning on to ancient wisdom to choose the right trees and get the best results,” explains Sivaram TR, founder of Vetri NGO. His initiative, Vanathukkul Tiruppur, a project completely funded by corporates, has planted one million trees in Tiruppur district of Tamil Nadu. “Most of the land belongs to the corporates which are either ancestral properties that were left barren or purchased by them for expansions like setting up a spinning mill, wind mill or solar park.”
Rethinking spaces
Sivaram explains how our ancestors divided land into Kurunji (mountains), Mullai (forests), Marudham (farmlands), Neidhal (coastal land) and Paalai( dry land) based on agro-climate conditions and recommended suitable plants.
“In Tamil Nadu, villages have names like Velampalayam, Puliampatti, Ichipatti, and Arasmapalyam, referring to trees (with these names) flourishing there for ages. Many insects, birds, and animals depend on these trees for food and shelter,” he says.
There is renewed interest in conservation among corporates, says G Sanjay Prasad, environmental engineer of Environmentalists Foundation of India, an NGO that works with 14 states in the country. They restore water bodies scientifically and plant native trees in the habitats surrounding the lakes. “They no longer look at planting a tree as a mere photo opportunity,” he observes.
Across the country, people are using native plants to restore green spaces, for many reasons. Native trees act as carbon sinks, points out Sanjay. “A carbon sink takes in all forms of carbon from atmosphere, and gives out oxygen. The trees regulate humidity, bring down temperature, and improve water percolation and water table. We set up floating islands on water where vetiver grass is grown along the border to strengthen the bunds. We also plant bamboo, and fruit-bearing trees like amla and Jamun.”
In Coimbatore, a 400-acre industrial space at Kallapalayam and Moppripalayam is now a green park thriving with thousands of native trees and a bird sanctuary. Award-winning environmentalist Yoganathan, who developed the park along with a team led by S Shantha Kumar, secretary of CODISSIA Industrial Park Limited, describes how a welcoming cool breeze and the intoxicating fragrance of brown vaagai flowers can uplift one’s spirits instantly. “Sorga maram (paradise tree) helps cut down radiations of cellphone towers while iluppai (mahua) trees are good to bring rains, and the naatuvangam (false Ashoka) filters dust and controls pollution. The jamun trees at the park are special. The seeds are from a jamun tree planted by Mahatma Gandhi during his visit to Coimbatore in 1934.”
‘Suiting our weather’
One can take in a whiff of fragrances — of shenbagam (Champaka) and manthaarai (bauhinia) — at the park, adds Shantha Kumar. “A study says that in the 1990s there were 30,000 iluppai trees in Tamil Nadu, which are now reduced to 10,000. We have planted these trees in thousands along with native trees like kodukkapuli (Manila tamarind) and semmurungai (red shower tree),” he adds.
While native species have adapted to climate and weather extremities, many exotic plants have become invasive pests, says Nilgiri-based restoration ecologist Vasanth Bosco. He gives an example of Senna spectabilis, a big canopied tree with bright yellow flowers that has eaten into the water table in places like Wayanad Wildlife Sanctuary, Mudumalai, and Bandipur forests.
You cannot plant alien trees, agrees B Saravanan, chief co-ordinator of Siruthuli, an NGO that has planted planted seven lakh native trees across Tamil Nadu through urban forest drives. “The Western Ghats have a diverse palette of trees. A chinnar or deodar tree that grows in Alpine or temperate zones cannot survive in a dry habitat of Tamil Nadu. In Andhra, red sanders thrive in the dry habitat that the land permits. We choose trees that suit our weather conditions.”
Agrees Sivaram who is also documenting the impact of million trees on the environment, in terms of tonnes of carbon sequestrated, amount of oxygen released, and more. He says, “To grow one tree costs ₹60. Generating funds is always a herculean task. More corporates should come forward and lend support.”
