Post-Aila efforts to grow

ONTHESPOT - AGRI-HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY OF INDIA

The Agri-Horticultural Society of India is on the path of regeneration after Aila.

Aila left in its wake a trail of destruction but efforts at regeneration are already on at the Agri-Horticultural Society of India (AHSI) at Alipore. The garden is gearing up for the impending monsoons when propagation is at its best and will rear upto 80,000 saplings this season through various methods.

According to official figures, the garden spread over 24 acres lost 20 trees on May 25. Most of the trees that fell were about 30 to 50 feet in height on an average and most of them were over 40 years old.

Experts at the garden felt that cyclones like Aila, which have a swirling effect, can cause mass destruction that cannot be controlled. “We can do as much as we can to maintain trees and plants, but during natural calamities like these, we have no choice but to bow down to nature,” said S.L. Rahman, the joint secretary of the society.

Among the 20 trees that fell in the garden that day, some were of rare varieties. These include, Bauhinia blakeana, also known as the Hong Kong Orchid tree, Pootia grandiflora and the Kigelia pinnata or Sausage Tree found in Africa. However, the garden does not stand at risk of losing these rare species. “We always keep two to three samples of the same species in the garden and every year try to propagate new trees from the older ones,” said Rahman. Throughout the year, efforts in cultivation and propagation continue through a number of methods.

Plant tissue culture at the AHSI,Air layering a Limonia tree at the garden
Air layering is one such method of propagation where a branch of a tree is used to grow another plant of the same species. An inch- wide strip of tissues from the surface of the trunk is removed containing the cambium, where cell division takes place and the phloem, through which carbohydrates and photosynthates are transported to the lower parts of the plant. “Removing these two vital layers stops regeneration in this part of the plant,” explained Rahman, “and the wound that is created is then air layered.” The scraped out part is treated with a rooting hormone and then covered with a layer of sphagnum moss and mud to retain moisture. The entire cushion is then wrapped with perforated plastic sheets and tied with thread.

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