Retired man plants trees on forgotten land, now it's Sao Paulo's largest park

4 hours ago

A retired man, Helio da Silva, transformed an abandoned, neglected strip of land in São Paulo into a thriving urban forest starting in 2003, using his own determination, personal savings, and simple planting methods.
After five years of effort, the area was officially recognized as São Paulo's first linear park, Tiquatira Park, now stretching 3.2 km with about 160 tree species and wildlife.
Da Silva continues to care for the forest after retiring in 2022, aiming to plant 50,000 trees, and his project demonstrates the value of grassroots urban restoration in a densely populated city.

Visited forests in Tasmania's Central Highlands that are currently being logged or scheduled for logging as part of a Bob Brown Foundation Threatened Forest Open Day.
The experience was sobering and sad, but also fascinating and beautiful, with rain throughout the day.
Learned about what is happening to the forests and what is planned for logging during talks under a marquee.

Two solar farms in Minnesota were seeded with native grasses and wildflowers in 2018 to test dual land use.
Over five years, insect diversity increased significantly, with native bees showing a 20-fold rise in abundance.
Pollinators from the solar sites visited adjacent soybean fields, providing unexpected pollination services to neighboring crops.

Daisugi is a Japanese forestry technique developed in the 15th century to address wood shortages by growing multiple straight trees from a single base, similar to a giant bonsai.
The method produces taruki timber, which is 140% more flexible and 200% denser than standard cedar, making it ideal for teahouse roofs and resistant to typhoons.
Some commentators compare daisugi to Western coppicing, noting it's a sustainable practice that avoids deforestation, though others question its necessity given Japan's abundant forests.

America’s 640 million acres of national public lands provide critical hunting and fishing opportunities.
Efforts are underway to safeguard these lands through policy changes for wildlife, waters, and habitats.
Voluntary conservation on private lands is essential, as 70% of U.S. lands are privately owned.

Scientists are intentionally infecting a 28-acre grove of American elms with Dutch elm disease to identify disease-tolerant trees for breeding.
The goal is to create a genetically diverse, disease-tolerant population of elms to restore a key species that once dominated American forests and floodplains.
American elms have cultural and historical significance, but Dutch elm disease has killed tens of millions, leaving only a few survivor trees.

Visited forests in Tasmania's Central Highlands that are currently being logged or scheduled for logging as part of a Bob Brown Foundation Threatened Forest Open Day.
The experience was sobering and sad, but also fascinating and beautiful, with rain throughout the day.
Learned about what is happening to the forests and what is planned for logging during talks under a marquee.

Two solar farms in Minnesota were seeded with native grasses and wildflowers in 2018 to test dual land use.
Over five years, insect diversity increased significantly, with native bees showing a 20-fold rise in abundance.
Pollinators from the solar sites visited adjacent soybean fields, providing unexpected pollination services to neighboring crops.

Daisugi is a Japanese forestry technique developed in the 15th century to address wood shortages by growing multiple straight trees from a single base, similar to a giant bonsai.
The method produces taruki timber, which is 140% more flexible and 200% denser than standard cedar, making it ideal for teahouse roofs and resistant to typhoons.
Some commentators compare daisugi to Western coppicing, noting it's a sustainable practice that avoids deforestation, though others question its necessity given Japan's abundant forests.

America’s 640 million acres of national public lands provide critical hunting and fishing opportunities.
Efforts are underway to safeguard these lands through policy changes for wildlife, waters, and habitats.
Voluntary conservation on private lands is essential, as 70% of U.S. lands are privately owned.

Scientists are intentionally infecting a 28-acre grove of American elms with Dutch elm disease to identify disease-tolerant trees for breeding.
The goal is to create a genetically diverse, disease-tolerant population of elms to restore a key species that once dominated American forests and floodplains.
American elms have cultural and historical significance, but Dutch elm disease has killed tens of millions, leaving only a few survivor trees.

Hasty Briefsbeta