PLANTING TREES
LT COL NOEL ELLIS
16/VII/2022
Surprisingly, it has rained well
in the ‘Sun City’. It is a welcome change. Now there is a daily supply of
water, instead of two hours thrice a week in peak summers. Torrential rains
have created waterlogging & flash floods. People were wading through knee
deep water. Cars are floating like boats; motorcycles are drifting like canoes
in the city. Feel like getting a BMP ready for flotation.
Within hours it appeared that
rain never came. The place became as dry as it could be. You are standing in
the sun and it is pouring. You look up, the sky is blue. A passing cloud can do
the funny trick. The sun keeps shining and you get drenched.
What if lightning falls close by!
That ‘bang’ can scare the daylights out of anyone. Yesterday, exactly the same
happened. Having just got up from my afternoon siesta, the bang was so loud, as
if it had fallen in the garden.
Wind speeds were high, trees were
swaying vigorously, leaves and branches were being ripped off. Weak branches
were shearing and shooting like missiles. Trees with superficial roots were
uprooted and fell on the road.
There was a lot of talk on our
colony ‘WhatsApp’ group about trimming of trees. Suffice to say, ‘little
knowledge is dangerous. Ugly spats between residents were exchanged but no one
really understood the purpose of trimming. For most, trimming meant chopping
off the tree itself. Then it became ‘India and Pakistan’. People who understood
the advantages of timely trimming vs people who said they would hug the tree if
anyone tried to touch them. Discussion took a horrid turn.
Then there were those “chatak
choos….”. “Because my car stands in the open under a tree, it needs to be cut”
as it might fall on the car. “There are too many trees in the colony and need
to be removed”, “not trimmed”. Nonsense! “We wait for the school bus with our
children under a shady tree, if it falls, who will be answerable if someone
gets hurt”. When it became such an idiotic discussion, I put the group on
silent.
Next day, a discussion on
planting of new trees in the colony started. It is no rocket science to
pinpoint where fresh saplings need to be planted. Fallen trees were never
replaced. The ones eaten by termites still have tufts sticking out. The
conversation was to form a ‘committee’ to find out the exact spots where to
plant them? What to plant? When to plant? Who will plant? Who will get the
plants? Who will pay? Who will cover the photo op? End result was nonsense
squared!
We as a family planted ten mango
seeds which we ate in vacant spaces infront of our house. We may have Dusseri
& Langda in five years from now. Though Mango is not the fruit of this
place, shade is more important.
The so-called committee was never
formed, no sapling was ever bought but we already have Mango seeds sprouting.
Seeds of Papaya, Jamun and Tamarind we ate this season have also been planted.
Plant we shall and at ‘no cost’. Rainy season is the best season for planting.
A tree matters more than futile discussions.
The ‘tamarind seeds’ have a
story. We were invited to a ‘memorial service’. In the dinner which followed,
on the ‘salad menu’ was ‘sweet tamarind’. This was the tastiest tamarind one
had tasted in ages. Seeds were collected in a paper napkin and brought home. In
two weeks, the seeds sprouted. Aim is to create a ‘Tamarind & Jamun Bonsai’
and plant the rest to grow into trees. Wish me luck.
Another variety which has sprouted on its own is Neem. A tree with minimum
requirements and maximum benefits. The Nimbolis (Neem Berries) which had fallen
have sprouted too. Once the plant is stable enough to survive on its own, it
shall be transplanted.
May it give shade and fruit to birds. May the
leaves purify the air and repel insects. May the fallen leaves make fantastic
antibacterial manure. May its branches make lovely Datuns for me and shady
perches for our birdy friends. Above all, may it live for many-many years as
our contribution to the environment.
Planting a tree is fine but
maintaining it till it is ‘self-sufficient’ is the issue. People are more into
photo ops, that is where the problem lies. Will my innovative experiments bear
fruit? I wonder!!!!!!!!!
JAI HIND
© NOEL ELLIS
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