CRUELTY TO TREES

Dr Bose of Kolkata did a famous experiment proving plants to be sensitive to how they are treated. So a plant treated well grows better and remains healthier. We have lot of movements preventing cruelty against animals and humans; what about plants?

Trees and plants are utterly defenceless against cruelty because they cannot make a noise or move from their place. So plants continue to be easy targets and Parlekars need to become conscious of the harm these lovely mute citizens of Parle have been facing. Parlekars have raised their voice against disturbing roots of trees by excessive digging, tarring and cementing around them- so municipality has starting taking steps to prevent these problems. But subtle forms of injury are continuing.

To prevent tree- fall and branch- fall, in the coming months, trees will have to endure massive pruning. I hope this will be done scientifically so that it serves the purpose but does not kill the tree. Besides this, the practice of chopping trees to make hoardings and shop windows more visible must be stopped immediately. An example is the jewellery shop opposite Babasaheb Gawde Hospital on M G Road- they have chopped the tree and it will surely die shortly.

Many advertisements and hoardings are nailed or stapled to trees. This causes injury to the tree. Imagine, if someone nails or staples a person’s body- how will he feel? Trees feel the same way. And this is not only about feelings. Trees absorb nutrients and water through their roots and these are conducted throughout the tree by structures called xylem (water) and phloem (nutrients). These are vertically linear spongy structures- almost like the jelly- filled cables of the telephone department. And they are situated closer to the circumference of the tree. When a nail is driven in, these structures get damaged, form scars and the water-nutrient supply gets disrupted. Secondly every plant/ tree has a cover or bark which is meant to protect it from infection and dehydration. The nail- track provides a route for germs to enter the tree structure and destroy it. Thus a ‘small’ nail can damage a large tree. I was appalled to see that BMC has nailed a notice on one of the trees on MG Road. (An excellent description of this process can be found it the BNHS quarterly Hornbill of Dec 2014.)

Some establishments- notably those on Hanuman Road and opposite 'Tea Villa' trees have been wrapped in fairy lights. I think the purpose is to decorate with fancy lighting to attract customers. But the tree gets affected due to the heat and electricity from wires. Plus there will be nails and wires used to tether the lights to trees.

Trees and plants should be treated as ‘Parlekars’ on par with humans and animals. And we need to protect them because they cannot protect themselves. First, no hoardings/ advertisements should be permitted on trees. Municipality should erect special poles on which these can be put up. And fines should be levied on anybody found sticking or poking trees.