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Originally Posted by prashamk
Good work dear. Keep it up & yes welcome to the forum. Can you please shed some light on kind of trees you are planting and why have you selected those.
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The majority of our trees are natives - about 40 different types so far. We do have some teak (about 10% the last time I checked) and we use another tree, Acacia mangium which is an exotic, but doesn't self-seed in our area. It is because it is of the bean family and puts back into the soil much more than it takes. It allows us to plant on steep slopes, rapidly securing the soil and preventing landslides.
We are using the plantation trees to bring in a permanent rainforest - so far we are doing very well with the concept. We don't clear land, we buy pasture land and convert it. Since you can't go directly to a mature rainforest, we use the pioneer species of a plantation to get there.
One of our challenges is getting seeds for natives - we usually have to harvest them ourselves. Most everyone plants teak and gmelina here, if they plant anything. We have no gmelina, it is an incredibly invasive tree. Teak won't self seed here either - the seeds have to be treated before they will sprout.
As you can see, I am a pragmatic environmentalist, not a purest. We are pushing everyone to go to natives as much as possible (and at times Acacia for the base for its ability to help other trees grow) - but I figure using teak to get back to a permanent, native rainforest is a venial sin...
I can write much more if anyone is curious. Part of my desire of being in the forum is education - of me.
Hi from Costa Rica
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