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High on a Hill

♥ We Love Green Technology ♥

by Hillary Chan, Malaysia

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Make your own carbon offsetter this weekend

Aug 28, 2009 13:48

A friend told me that in the past, it was required by law for all terrace houses in Malaysia to have enough space for a small garden. And that it was required by law that each homeowner plants a fruit tree on this plot.

I am not sure how true this is as I haven't seen it written anywhere, but I do remember growing up with each of my neighbors having at least one fruit tree. My mother planted a mango tree in our plot. Around my neighborhood, there were mangoes, cempedaks, nangka, papayas, rambutans, sugar cane, langsat and other trees.

As each tree always bears too much fruit for its owners and their family to consume, come harvest time, the fruits are shared. My family had migrated here from another state, and this concept of sharing and giving helped us settle in and make friends. Neighbors would give us papayas and cempedaks, and when our mangoes were ripe and ready, we could proudly reciprocate their love. Friendship grew easily.

My brother, being a boy, would help an elderly neighbor to harvest hers with a long sabit as her fruits (rambutan*, I think) were too high up for her to harvest on her own. Thus, a polite and strong boy was bred.

There are many good reasons to plant a tree. These days, some tech companies are offering us a chance to offset our carbon footprint by planting trees on our behalf. Canon did so last year, see this PDF report.

Well, instead of waiting for a tech company to do it for you, why not do it on your own? Planting a tree is easy. Just buy a healthy one from the nursery, dig a hole as deep as the roots and twice as wide, stick it in and cover with soil.

My family didn't have to do anything to care for our mango tree after sticking it in. It grew healthily on its own. But if your soil is not as healthy, you might need to provide some minor care in its first year. You can read all about how to plant and care for your own tree here.

The United Nations Environment Programme has set a goal for us to plant 7 billion trees by the end of 2009 and there are only four months left to the year. Do your part lah.

* Rambutan trees are not that good to plant by your house by the way. Its roots can grow pretty large, which will cause cracks in your pillars and walls. Go for trees with smaller roots such as papayas and you'll be safe.

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Sepanta says...
Very Good Idea , Everyone Can Do It Easily . It`s Very
Important For Us & The Future Generations That At
least Having Clean Air To Breath.

Aug 29, 2009 01:20