Planting Trees

One has succeeded in life, says a Chinese adage, if he has climbed mountains, written a book, planted trees and has sired a son.

Climbing mountains, however, does not necessarily and literally refer to Mounts Pulag or Everest. But of course, it’s a great bonus if we conquered even some less popular mountain peaks within our lifetime. Mountains could also refer to big obstacles in life such as dilemmas and other psychological, emotional and spiritual battles, in which we emerged victorious even if we stumbled along the way.

Writing a book has long been part of Chinese civilization. Whether they used to write on a roll of sliced bamboos or on a scroll of paper, the Chinese have long valued writing down knowledge and ancient wisdom to be passed on to future generations.

And why is planting trees included in the Chinese proverb? Trees have to be felled to produce paper for one’s book. So it’s just proper that one should replenish the trees that were used to produce his book.

Fathering a son, if not a daughter, has something to do with the continuity of the human race.

But let’s zero in on planting trees. The rains, although irregular until this writing, have come and it’s the right time to plant those seedlings. Before we know it, it’s going to be summer again and trying to plant seedlings for photo opportunities won’t do our environment any good.

Planting materials is no problem. One can ask seedlings from the environment and natural resources department.

If you wish to plant Benguet Arabica coffee, you can look around for seedlings growing randomly under the shade of mother trees in a neighbor’s yard. Some few Arabica coffee plants in our backyard, which now heave with green beans, actually came from a neighbor’s backyard in my hometown of Kibungan.

Or better yet – produce your own seedlings. Some of the fruits that you buy from the market such as jackfruit and star apple have plenty of seeds, which can easily germinate. Just put some soil even into recycled plastic bags or tetra-pack juice containers and the seed shoots are eager to break free from the good brown earth to embrace the sunshine.

If you sowed the seeds of the jackfruit you ate six months ago, you already have some seedlings to plant this rainy season. It’s a pity if these seeds would just end up at the garbage dump in Irisan. Mother Nature has designed that every tree or plant must be propagated through their seeds, if not through cuttings or tubers, in the same way that we humans continue to sire sons and daughters for the continuity of the human race.