Tree planting preparation (Sadhana Forest method)

Recycle material and use low-tech techniques to plant trees to:

• Improve irrigation efficiency, • Improve young tree survival rate in harsh environment, • Rehabilitate the Dry Evergreen Tropical Forest (in this case near Auroville, India). Rehabilitation of the forest offers many other benefits such as soil rejuvenation, life-friendly microclimate development, biodiversity enhancement, water retention and so much more.

"If we could only understand what a tree does for us, how beneficial it is to life on earth, we would (as many tribes have done) revere all trees as brothers and sisters." (B. Mollison)

Difficulté

Easy Facile

Durée

1 hour(s) heure(s)

Catégories

Alimentation & Agriculture, Recyclage & Upcycling, Science & Biologie

Coût

0 EUR (€)

Tree, Sadhana en none Technique 0

Introduction

Acknowledgements

The seek for timber and firewood, fights between British and French colonial troops and some government incentive for cash crops for Europe in the early 20th century depleted the native Dry Evergreen Tropical Forest in the region of Pondicherry. Less vegetation coverage combined with heavy rain episodes lead to massive topsoil erosion and transformed the luxuriant ecosystem of the plateau into a dry savannah. This severe degradation of the ecosystem impacted the biodiversity, reduced the water underground levels, reduced fertility, increased surface temperature, degraded the livelihoods and eroded the culture of nature stewardship of the local communities.

Our solution and its expectable benefits

Recycle material and use low-tech techniques to plant trees to:

• Improve irrigation efficiency,
• Improve young tree survival rate in harsh environment,
• Rehabilitate the Dry Evergreen Tropical Forest (in this case near Auroville, India).

Rehabilitation of the forest offers many other benefits such as soil rejuvenation, life-friendly microclimate development, biodiversity enhancement, water retention and so much more.

"If we could only understand what a tree does for us, how beneficial it is to life on earth, we would (as many tribes have done) revere all trees as brothers and sisters." (B. Mollison)

Matériaux

• Parts:
  • (1) Small-diameter pipe (see procedures for details),
  • (1) Rope (use biodegradable rope, e.g. coconut fiber rope),
  • (1) Plastic bottle (recycle);
• Consumables:
  • Soil (e.g. topsoil from other grown trees),
  • Humanure compost,
  • Urine-activated charcoal,
  • Water,
  • Mulching material (corn stalks, rice hulls, hay, straw, dry leaves, Chopped Rameal Wood (CRW, a.k.a. “Bois Raméal Fragmenté” (BRF)) …),
  • Glue (for plastics, e.g. epoxy)

Outils

• Tools:
  • (1) Knife,
  • (1) tube (probably 40 cm diameter);

Étape 1 - Preliminary requirements

Étape 2 - Analyze the topography of the terrain / identify slope

Étape 3 - Define where you want to plant the tree

Étape 4 - Build a mound

1. Install the tube on the planting zone,
2. Dig dirt from uphill part of the planting zone,
3. Add the dirt around the tube to form a mound (looks like a volcano),
4. Add humanure, urine-activated charcoal and soil (e.g. topsoil from other grown trees) in the tube;

Étape 5 - Dig a hole in the soil mix (humanure, urine-activated charcoal, topsoil) in the tube

Étape 6 - If not done yet, build the bottle-irrigation system

Étape 7 - Fill the plastic bottle with water to make sure that there are no leaks

Étape 8 - Assemble the bottle-irrigation system with the sapling

Étape 9 - Apply the “plant a tree” procedure to install the sapling and the bottle-irrigation system in the tube in the mound

Étape 10 - Remove the tube

Étape 11 - Frequently examine the moisture level