9: Building Farmland with Trees

Nepal

A Climate Pollinator story by Sierra Ross Richer

Rice, wheat and maize are the three main crops grown in the agricultural region of South-Eastern Nepal. A joint project between the Brethren in Community Welfare Society (A non-profit organization run by Brethren in Christ (BIC) Nepal) and Mennonite Central Committee (MCC) has worked to add trees to the mix.

Over the last 9 years, the partners distributed over a thousand trees to rural families. Each household got one mango tree starter, one lychee and one jackfruit. 

“Of course some died,” said Shemlal Hembrom, the chairman of BIC Nepal who volunteers with the project. “But more than 60 percent survived, so now if you go in the village area you can see the trees.”

Most of the BIC churches in Nepal are located in small agricultural communities in the Terai plains. Both droughts and floods are common threats faced by farmers, and Shemlal said, deforestation has made these threats more intense. 

“During the dry season, in the months of May and June, it is very hot, very completely dry,” Shemlal said. “Because of that, whatever (people) plant, even the vegetables, it just dries up.” 

At the same time, Shemlal said, “When there were no trees, whenever there was a flood, it completely flooded the villages.”

In the last decade since planting trees, Shemlal said that communities are starting to see some benefits. Trees provide shade, block the wind and help keep riverbanks from washing away during floods. 

The book Drawdown: The Most Comprehensive Plan Ever Proposed to Reverse Global Warming, published in 2017, ranks tree intercropping (planting trees amid annual crops) as the 17th most effective solution for climate change. When planted alongside crops like maize and wheat, trees help create a more suitable environment for crops by blocking the wind and sun, slowing water evaporation, protecting the soil from erosion and bringing nutrients up from deep in the earth. 

“In the book of Genesis when God created human beings,” Shemlal said, “God gave them to cultivate the land and take care of whatever they have… That means they need to care for the jungle, the trees, the climate.” He believes planting trees is the best way to do that. 

On his own small plot of land, Shemlal has planted over three hundred trees. He said: “I try to help other people see that planting trees, it helps with cultivation.”

Photos

A grove of teak trees Shemlal planted to show his community the value of tree planting. Teak trees provide many benefits: “Teak timber is expensive,” Shemlal said, and “fallen leaves become compost for any crops surrounding the area.” In addition, these trees help bring moisture to a dry climate. Photo contributed by Shemlal Hembrom.

Reu Devi Shah stands beside a lychee tree planted as part of the joint project between BIC Nepal and MCC Nepal. As a beneficiary of the program, Reu, from the Jahada Rural Municipality Ward no. 2, Morang, received a mango, jackfruit and lychee tree to plant as well as training in vegetable farming and vegetable seeds to plant. Photo contributed by Shemlal Hembrom.