BY NOW, the normal just about anyone who either reads or watches TV is learning more about this phenomenon called global warming. What was an indistinct cry accredited previously to scientific kooks or others like them is hitting more and more closely to home. Especially when one considers that life will never be quite the same. For one, that oceanfront condo or seaside resort once so beckoning may not be such a welcome investment after all, especially with the threat of inundation so real and so near.
What can one do to help — even in a little way — alleviate global warming? I will not go into the whys and wherefores of why one should plant trees, but simply exhort everyone to get off his or her butt and get ready to plant a tree or trees after what promises to be a long hot summer. First of all, it is a big mistake to plant any trees or do serious gardening work at this time of the year. The heat and need for water will militate against your effort. Let nature take its course and wait for the rainy season to begin come June.
But wait… to plant trees, one will need seedlings. And not just any seedlings, mind you. One must first consider where one is going to plant his tree(s), and whether the area can support the type of tree one has in mind. For example, one should not plant forest type dipterocarps in areas like sidewalks that have those pesky Meralco or PLDT posts with lines and wires on them. Nor should one plant big trees where both plumbing and other sanitary facilities are located, like one’s village water system. So, read a bit and look around at what trees are already in place, and consider which ones will suit you best. Do you want trees with large leafy canopies, or large flowering shrubs that almost mimic small trees? Or do you want trees that will attract birds and bats, and help in the furtherance of the ecosystem?
My friend Ed (Chief) de Vera and I have this terrible habit of picking up seeds or uprooting small seedlings in anticipation of the planting season from June to about September. This time of year, in fact, is when most trees come up with their seeds or seed pods. Some seeds germinate pretty much on their own, while others need help. Again, consulting with some experts from places like the Manila Seedling Bank foundation or those ubiquitous flower and tree farms in Los Baños will help a lot. Of course, one can take the easy route and purchase seedlings ready to plant from those same places. But get instructions from the vendors, such as where to plant those seedlings, the width of the grownup trees’ canopies, whether they prefer morning or afternoon sun, etc. Find out also how best to prepare the hole which one will insert the tree in, the mixture of garden soil and compost to be placed in the planting medium, etc.
Find out also which varieties of trees produce relatively hard wood, which ones are basically softwoods, or which ones have branches that break under the least bit of wind and rain because they are brittle. This little bit of research will stop you from getting a lot of grief come rainy season and typhoon time. If you want birds to populate your vicinity, plant a good old balete (fig), of which there are hundreds — even thousands — of varieties. But these fig trees, otherwise known as parasite trees, should be planted in the clear and not near a place that can be destroyed by their powerful root networks. Some trees also have hardened seed pods that will dent your cars or heads when these pop and fall to the ground. They are best planted away from places where people gather or valuable items are kept. Just like common sense tells one not to plant coconut trees where the nuts can fall on an unsuspecting guest or friend.
In the end, however, planting trees will provide one with a sense of satisfaction and joy, especially when one is able to enjoy the cool breezes that seem to be where trees also are. One will also enjoy the drop in the ambient temperatures in the shaded areas by as much as 10 to 15 degrees. Best of all, trees attract birds and other natural forms of wildlife, and the sounds one will hear especially from 5 to 6 a.m. and p.m. are indescribable.
May 26th, 2008 at 8:30 pm
[...] Services « Plant a tree… plant many trees! [...]
May 23rd, 2008 at 9:44 am
Casi,
Am not sure of the orgs name, but my classmate Gerry Ledesma and his group have been replanting trees etc in Mt Kanlaon area. There are many others too who do so on their own initiative. My family has planted a lot of trees in our farm in Talisay. This we do on our own, getting seedlings straight from the ground and replanting them.
Arnel,
You can ask DENR for hardwood tree seedlings while DA has fruit tree seedlings. I remember visiting the DA compound in San Andres to pick out seedlings which they gave us for free.
The past few days, I have been drying out the mango (carabao) seeds of mangoes our family consumes. I hope to get them to germinate in a couple of weeks once they are dried out and ready for exposure to the rains
May 22nd, 2008 at 5:45 am
Very educational and inspiring article on planting trees. Yes, the benefits of trees in your backyard are plenty…shade, birds and the indescribable sound they make, fruits galore…Yes, let’s all plant one tree each, can u imagine how green the Philippines can be?!!!
Ding
May 20th, 2008 at 7:59 am
This is a nice article.
Our homeowners’ association in Paranaque wanted to plant trees in an area approcimately 3 heactares. However, we do not have funds to buy seedlings. Where can we get free seedlings?
May 19th, 2008 at 1:30 pm
just wanna ask are there any orgs that spearhead tree planting..am from W.visayas (iloilo) area..hope to join when the activity comes…
May 16th, 2008 at 5:10 pm
Hi!
The year was 1978, i was a graduating high school student then. As a requirement for graduation, one must plant a tree (male or female). This is one of the program of the late Pres. Marcos green revolution and reforestration. Seedlings (giant Ipil-ipil) were given to our towns Municipality for free and we were accompanied by military men in planting those seedlings in the mountains. Imagine, if the government can re-activate and implement this program how many trees can be planted every year.
May 14th, 2008 at 11:55 am
Great article!
It cannot be over-emphasized that spewing in the air the carbon that Nature took millions of years to capture and store in d ground (by way of burning fossil fuels) is self-destructive. Now coupling that with massive deforestation of trees is proof of the human race’s collective insanity.
We need to collectively re-plant several billion trees — even for a selfish reason: for the survival of our species.
I do suggest, in this crisis time where both Food & Fuel are skyrocketing in cost, that we consider the humble Moringa tree (Malunggay) from whose seeds we can derive clean, renewable BioFuel AND from its leaves we can derive more nutrients — gram for gram — than from any other source on the market.
Check out the Asian Alliance Against Global Warming (www.thasianalliance.org) and its 88,000-Trees-by-08.08.08 campaign. Cheers, Adriel
May 13th, 2008 at 3:28 pm
sorry for the typo’s…
“May” should have been capitalized
“a bad time” in the second to the last line… and I meant to insert ” in the Visayas” between the words PLANT and AS in the same line..
mea culpa…
John
May 13th, 2008 at 3:22 pm
You are spreading the good word.. not the word of God but the word of Mother Nature. More power to you and more forests to the philippines. More trees to the world. I have lots of Molave seedlings in Lapulapu. I give them away for free providing I am assured they will get planted and nurtured through the first two years. This years may weather just mite not be abad teim to plant as its been raining incessantly in Cebu. Thanks for your good words for the environment.
May 11th, 2008 at 1:16 am
Hi!
Thank you for uploading such a worthy article. I am on of those who love in growing a tree. When I was just in high school I able to plant more than a hundred trees and when I reach at the age of 28 I cut it to support my dream house. Now, that I am working overseas I dreamt of aquiring a vacant lot in our province Bohol and convert it to a forest. I hope everyone will have an eagerness to to plant and grow a tree. Seeing those gropwn-up trees will help you feel good and healthy.