SAVE MOTHER EARTH, SAVE LIFE: PLANT TREES!

If your plan is for one year plant rice. If your plan is for ten years, plant trees. If your plan is for one hundred years educate children.
-Confucius

Planting trees is the most fun and fulfilling thing to happen in our lives. It can be really tiring to plant those precious trees but it's the best thing that we can give back to our mother earth for giving us the best shelter in the planet. The trees are the most precious gifts to our life from the nature. They are an important source for cleaning and refreshing air as they produce oxygen and consume greenhouse gases. In a technological world that we are into where pollution and abusive acts that we see everyday, trees are our only refuge and hope.

Way back when I was 8 years old, my grandfather brought me and my dad to his farm 3 hours away by walk from the main road to plant mango trees and coconut trees. I remembered clearly that I planted 6 coconut trees with his assistance in the field. He was digging holes for about 50 trees and told me when I get older I can go back there and harvest, eat and drink the juice of the coconuts. He also reminded me to plant more trees around to save lives. I wish all grandfathers are like him.

The world would much be a better place to live if we just had more people to educate everyone on giving importance of the trees around us. This world would much be a better place if all people strive to be a role model on planting trees and saving lives. We should all be attentive and participate on simple acts to conserve the nature in the community. We should promote love and respect towards the environment that we are living in.

---

WHY PLANT TREES?

---

As I mentioned earlier, trees are the most precious gifts that we can have while living on earth. Without it, we wouldn't appreciate life. Trees are as important as food and water. Here are the benefits that we can get if we plant trees aside from providing us oxygen.

1. Reduce air temperature.

Trees block the sunlight that reduces the heat that touches your skin. It basically removes the heat energy from the air. These are natural air conditioners. When you go to the countryside, you would feel the difference of the air temperature from the city. I went outside yesterday at 12 noon and I felt the heat from the ground on my face that seemed to burn my skin. It was terrifying.

As you can see in the picture, the nature seemed to be still and serene. There are the shades of the trees that make people relaxed even when they have to work everyday. Imagine the world with trees around, everything seems to be easier everyday.

2. Help reduce soil erosion.

In Cebu City, water runoff from storms is not as serious as with other islands around the Philippines. People still cut trees, use it for their own benefits and do not mind replacing it by planting new ones. If we have more trees around, it can reduce the potential of erosion during typhoons and save the lives of the many.

3. Cleanse the air.

Do you know that trees absorb odors and pollutant gases and filter out particulates out of the air by trapping them by their leaves and barks? Yes, they do! Have you observed that when you are in a place where there are trees, everything seems to be really fresh and clean? Trees are responsible for giving us good air to breathe in everyday. Why hesitate to plant some?

4. Heal people.

Studies have shown that patients with views outside with trees out the windows, they heal faster and have lesser complications. Children with ADHD show fewer symptoms when they are exposed to nature. It is said that the access to nature helps reduce mental fatigue.

Aside from that, it surely makes people happy. Without you knowing it, it gives our hearts a pleasant feeling and excitement that we could see our environment green. The are scientific proof that says the greener neighborhood, the happier the people are whether they're married or single, whether they have nice houses or a hut. Being around trees affects your overall satisfaction in life.

5. Bring diversity.

Tree planting brings people from different places, different culture, different orientation, different ages together. It gives an opportunity to gather communities to have one goal, and one purpose - to help save the environment. There is no need to explain our differences because we are there for one cause.

Whatever professions we have, whatever field of expertise we do doesn't matter. What matters most is how we work together to come up with one result. These guys here were very supportive and cool that they make planting easier and quicker.

Brother Romeo Bernabe is 81 years old as of this writing and he can still plant trees! Can you just imagine how he climb up the steep with his cane supporting him to go up? He is one of the active leaders in the church and he is the number one supporter of every activity that we do in the organization. Salute to him.

_{The Gabrino Family.}

There are more families like them who participated in the activity. Through the scorching heat of the sun, they are still happy planting because they are together. No matter what family you came from, whatever your background is, you can still make a difference through planting trees.

---

WHERE TO PLANT TREES?

---

Many people ask about where should they plant trees when they have no hectares of land to plant those. Well you don't have to own one because there are so many programs in the government or even the non-government organizations who have this kind of initiative like tree planting.

The Churches of Christ in Cebu had a tree planting day on February 16, 2018 at Naga, Cebu. This is an initiative of Brother Arman Labang - one of the members of the organization. He encouraged everyone to gather and plant trees as a way of giving back to the environment. He owned hectares of land so we were able to participate in the event. There were about a hundred or more people who attended the tree planting and we were able to plant 5,831 trees in just a day! Wow! The number is surreal but everything was done through the help of all the individuals with the leadership of the people behind this event.

_{Brother Arman in green and his wife in pink. The other two women are active leaders in the women's group. The BJMP personnels in uniform. They have been a big help in the campaign.}

I personally thank Brother Arman and the family for such great gesture that they have imparted to the nature on that day. And of course, to all the people who participated in this activity. Everybody had so much fun though exhausted right after. There is no such feeling of fulfillment that can be better than this.

_{The area where trees should be planted.}

We covered the 40 hectares of land with mahogany trees on that day. The land was not so steep that it was a bit easier to climb up and go around the area to look for a spot to plant. There are right ways of planting a tree which I'm gonna talk about later.

---

WHEN TO PLANT TREES?

---

If you are living in another country, fall is the best time to plant trees. It is said that in August, September and October are the best months. Well it all depends when it actually feels like it's fall but make sure that the hottest days are gone and the ground is not frozen.

In the Philippines, almost all months are best months to plant trees but ideally, a drizzly atmosphere is the best time. It is favorable for the seedlings to flourish when there is a little rain. When the temperature and the rainfall is moderate, it can be a good season to plant trees. The Department of Environment and Natural Resources is calling on the public to take advantage of the weather and go green.

The Philippines is one of the most severely deforested countries in the tropics and most deforestation has happened in the last 40 years. Illegal logging is one of the biggest factor why the forests in the country has been endangered. According to the study, the country is facing food insecurity due to soil erosion. Many provinces in the country had lost their croplands by 50% due to vulnerable erosion. Not just that! The Philippines is also facing water insecurity because of degraded and poorly managed watersheds. Water quality has deteriorated in some areas of the country.

_{Photo from source.}

This has been a problem since the beginning of time so everyone is encouraged to plant trees as part of the rehabilitation of the forests. The are numbers of initiative that are enhanced to make deforestation to reforestation. All we have to do is to take part.

---

HOW TO PLANT TREES?

---

We have planted mahogany trees on February 16 and they said, mahogany trees are easy to grow because it can tolerate soils that are mildly acidic or alkaline. They can also grow near the coastal areas that are exposed to salt spray but the best soil to grow the trees is well-drained. Mahogany trees grows best in a direct exposure to sunlight but it can also tolerate to shaded locations. These trees may look strong but they are also prone to pests such as tent caterpillars, webworm, leaf notcher, scale insects, leaf miners and tip moth but this does not threat the health of the tree.

_{Photo from source. Mahogany trees.}

STEPS ON HOW TO PROPERLY PLANT MAHOGANY TREES

Step 1. Dry.

Mahogany trees produce seeds so before sowing, the seeds should be dried up first.

_{Photo from source.}

Step 2. Plant.

You don't plant the seeds directly in the ground but you have to plant the dried seeds on loam soil place in a small plastic bag. Nurture the seeds with sunlight, water and air until it became a seedling.

Step 3. Dig

Shove a deep hole about 20 inches deep or 50.8 cm. or as deep as the container that is holding the sapling. The width of the hole should be twice of the diameter of the sapling.

_{This doesn't seem to be deeper as of the time I took the picture.}

Step 4. Transfer.

Now you can transfer the seedling to the hole that you just dug. Remember to tear the bottom of the plastic container of your seedling for the roots to easily hold the soil.

Step 5. Guard.

You wanna make sure that your seedlings are safe from being eaten by herbivores or from being step on by passersby so it is better to put a fence to guard it. You can also use twigs to protect it.

_{Photo from source.}

Step 6. Nurture.

During rainy seasons, watering the trees may not be needed but during abnormal drought, you have to water it everyday. Consistent water supply is needed. You can also fertilize the soil for three times a year - organic or non-organic.

Planting trees need enough motivation and education. For us to help save the environment, we should educate the people on how they can become a big asset to change the world by just planting a tree for a day. We should let them know that taking care of the mother earth can be easy if everybody is in unity for doing such activity.

I hope you have learned something from me today. Thank you so much for reading.

Until next time,

@honeyletsgo