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PLANTING TREES

 

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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