By Rachel Kramer | Executive Director
Nursery #1 update: Mahalevona village
In October 2024 our sister team partnered with farmers to launch the first native tree nursery in our collaborative initiative. Three team members and 19 local farmers came together over 5 days to hand-construct 3,000 biodegradable bamboo seedling pots, fill them with soil, and plant seeds collected earlier in the season from native trees and undrestory plants. Over the next months, two more collaborations like this helped us reach our target of 10,000 seedlings in the first participtating community. When the young trees are ready later in 2025, they'll be planted in agroforestry plots to make space for wild silk moths and other at-risk species.
In February 2025, work began on our second farmer-led tree nursery. Five new farmers teamed up to handmake 10,000 biodegradable seedling pots from native bamboo. As with our first nursery, constructing bamboo pots was hard work. Hand saws dulled and needed regular sharpening. Our local sister team tested out a battery-operated electric saw, which works well for as many pots as can be constructed in 2 hours. When the battery drains and needs recharging, it must travel by riverboat for a day to the nearest town that has electricity. The majority of pots in our nurseries were thus vita tanana (made by hand). Unlike standard plastic pots produced in factories from fossil fuels, these pots create no waste and can be cracked and planted in the ground along with young trees. They also support local income.
Seed collection and germination is the next step for this second tree nursery. A few seedlings are already growing, which is a source of pride. These include hintsina (Intsia bijuga), a host plant for Borocera spp. silk moths. Beyond hintsina’s value as a food source for wild silk worms and other wildlife, the mature trees are used by local communities as a hardwood for building homes. By delivering multiple values to farmers, we strive for sustainability.
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