Children Forest

Aarav M.

Grade 6

I picked the corner of the field near the water tank, because nothing grows there yet. I am planting neem and pungai. My grandfather says neem trees outlive the people who plant them, so I want mine to be the tallest one.

Diya K.

Grade 7

Last summer our classroom was too hot to sit in by eleven o'clock. My patch is on the west side, where the sun hits the wall. If the trees grow tall enough, the room behind them stays cool. That is the whole idea.

Ishaan R.

Grade 6

I am counting birds. Before we planted there were four kinds in our field — crows, mynas, pigeons and one bulbul. I write down every new one I see. My patch has fruit trees, so I think the list will get longer.

Kabir S.

Grade 7

My patch is all native species — no ornamental trees. I checked every sapling against the forest department's list for our district. Tree guards cost more than the saplings do, which surprised me, but goats are a real problem here.

Meera N.

Grade 8

I look after the saplings that other students planted and could not keep watering, as well as my own. Fourteen so far. Two died in April and I replaced them. Keeping a tree alive through the first summer is the hard part, not the planting.