The right tree, in the right place

A tree planted today may live for decades. Where it is planted, which species is chosen, how it is cared for - all of this shapes a landscape long after the people who planted it are gone. This is worth remembering as India urbanises. Rising temperatures, air pollution, water stress and biodiversity loss make the case for greener landscapes urgent. Trees give shade, cool the air, support biodiversity, protect soil and improve our well-being.

So what do we actually mean by afforestation? Is it just putting saplings in the ground? Or is it about building living landscapes, where the right trees grow in the right places and become part of a working ecosystem?

Indian tradition has an answer, of sorts. Trees have never been merely trees in our imagination. They are witnesses to stories, shelter for travellers, sources of food and medicine, symbols of life itself. The forests of the Ramayana, especially Panchavati, are not empty wilderness - they are full of trees, rivers, animals, birds, people. The Skanda Purana celebrates the planting of Ashvattha, Neem, Banyan, Tamarind, Kapittha, Bilva, Amla and Mango. This thread runs through our festivals, literature, songs and cinema, where trees appear again and again - not as scenery, but as memory, shelter, spirit, livelihood. Our culture has always known that nature isn’t separate from us. Ecology now gives us the vocabulary to explain why. A tree is never really alone. Its roots work with soil and microorganisms; its canopy shapes the microclimate around it; its flowers and fruit feed insects and birds; its fallen leaves return nutrients to the ground. So plantation can’t just mean picking a fast-growing species and sticking it wherever there’s space. Soil, rainfall, temperature, groundwater, root behaviour, surrounding vegetation, maintenance - all of it matters. A tree that thrives in a park may not belong on a narrow road. A tree with a wide canopy under power lines becomes a problem waiting to happen. A thirsty species has no place in a water-stressed landscape.

Consider Conocarpus erectus. It grew fast, stayed green year-round, and became a favourite for urban and roadside planting - until its ecological and infrastructural costs became clear, and several states pulled back. The lesson isn’t "native good, exotic bad." It’s simpler: right tree, right place, and right ecosystem.

We also need to stop measuring success by numbers. Saplings planted, hectares covered - these tell us about effort, not outcome. What matters is survival, growth, whether the tree actually does its job in the ecosystem. Schools can adopt and monitor trees. Resident associations can keep neighbourhood tree registers. Panchayats can protect old groves and mature trees. Geotagging and survival audits can track what actually lives. Because planting without follow-up care means nothing. A photograph of a sapling is not an outcome. Our traditions carry a relationship with nature that has lasted generations. It’s time to turn that into everyday practice. The tree planted today might shade a child we’ll never meet, shelter a bird decade from now, hold soil and water long after today’s headlines are forgotten. So afforestation shouldn’t stop at planting more - it should mean planting more of the right species, in the right place. The next plantation drive should start with three questions: Which tree does this land need? What ecosystem will it support? Who will look after it in the years ahead? India’s green future depends on planting more - but planting wisely - and on caring faithfully for what grows.

Mahesh Kumar is Chief Executive Officer, National Medicinal Plants Board, Ministry of Ayush, and Gaurav Sharma is Media & Communication Officer, Press Information Bureau; Views presented are personal.