7-11 mini store in Chiang Mai support recycled cardboard for trees planting
On July 17, 2011, Bring the elephant home foundation arranged the big planting event at the Elephant Jungle project, Mae Tang, Chiang Mai for the second year. About 80 volunteers from Chiang Mai university and 20 volunteers from Elephant Nature Park participated. In a day, we could finish about 4,000 saplings and covered one side of the mountain! After the tree planting event, the students had a chance to visit and spend time with the elephants at the park.
We would like to give a big thank for Choice ministore Co., Ltd. or better known as “7-11” and especially to Mr. Worawat Tantranond, the managing director, who supported us for 4,000 recycled card boards from 18 branches of 7-11 in Chiang Mai. Normally, they can earn money by selling the used card boards to recycling companies, but this time, they decided to support us to restore the forest for elephants. Hopefully next year we can work together again and create a better future for Thai elephants together!
Click more for more details about this method and photos of tree planting event at the Elephant Jungle.
Due to the fast-growing weeds and grasses, last year we noticed that many trees couldn’t grow very well. Another reason is that it’s difficult to access the planting site, on a high mountain during monsoon season and therefore, we have a lack of volunteers and workers to do trees maintenance.
So, for trees planting in 2011, we tried to use mulch mats, cut from recycled corrugated card board, covered around the planted saplings. This will increase the survival and growth of planted saplings, a method tested and used by FORRU-CMU. The mulch mats are about 40-50 cm in diameter, with a hole in the middle and a narrow slit, from the circle perimeter to its center. This way it’s easy to place the hole the board around the tree stem. If you use this method, make sure that the cardboard does not touch the stems of the planted tree, since it may abrade them, creating wounds, which can become infected by fungi. Put a bamboo stick through the mat to keep it in place.
There are a lot of benefits of this mulch mat as follow: most weed seeds need light to germinate. Placing mulch mats around planted saplings blocks out light and thus prevents weeds to grow around the planted trees. In addition to, mulch mats help to keep the soil cool, which reduces evaporation of soil moisture. Soil invertebrates are attracted by the cool, moist conditions beneath the mats. They churn up the soil around planted saplings, improving drainage and aeration. Furthermore, recycled cardboard is cheaper to compare with the other materials and good for the environment. They suppress weed growth and thus reduce the labour costs of weeding. Fertilizer is applied in a ring around the edge of the mat. Cardboard mats last one rainy season, gradually rotting down and adding organic matter to the soil.
However, we still need to do trees maintenance (some weeding and applying fertilizer) after trees planting event every 4 - 6 weeks until the end of this rainy season. We expect that the growth and the survival rate of the planted saplings this year to be much more then last year.
80 volunteers from the volunteer club of Chiang Mai University and from Elephant Nature Park came to join the big trees planting event at the Eelphant Jungle on July 17, 2011.
Volunteers help to cut the recycled cardboard to make the mulch mats for placing around 4,000 planted saplings.
Tour guide Bee from Elephant Nature Park lead the volunteers to join our tree planting event.
Volunteers helped to carry and distribute the card boards to all around the planting site.
After finish trees planting, we need to apply fertilizer before placing the card boards around the planted saplings. Then put a bamboo stake through the mat to keep it in place.
Tree planting volunteer from the ENP.
Antoinette van de Water, director of Bring the Elephant Home helped to place the card boards around the planted trees after applying fertilizer.
Planted tree with the cardboard.
