Future Trees Project
The continued conservation, planting and care of trees is vitally important to the survival of the Earth we inhabit. Trees absorb CO2 and convert it to oxygen, one of the building blocks of life itself.
The 2006 fire on Grootbos destroyed not only Forest Lodge but also a large area of the ancient milkwood forest behind the lodge. The fire struck the forest at mid-day, having burnt for more than a week under extremely hot and dry conditions. The result was that a large portion of the forest, including many ancient trees was destroyed by the fire. The Future Trees Project aims to rehabilitate this area as well as other forest areas on Grootbos that have been impacted by human activities in the past. Early aerial photographs have provided a clear indication of changes to the forest edges as a result of human impacts, primarily wood cutting and exotic tree invasions over the last eighty years. Appropriate indigenous trees (white milkwood, white stinkwood, pock ironwood and wild olive) have been grown by the Green Futures students to be used for the rehabilitation of these areas. Visitors to Grootbos can support the rehabilitation of these ancient milkwood forests as well as contribute to the work of the Foundation by getting their hands dirty and planting a tree.
As an organisation, family or individual one can make a contribution of R350 to the Foundation for a tree. This covers the cost of planting with compost and ongoing care of a 20-litre (5 year old) tree. The Foundation employs Green Futures graduate, Promise, on a full time basis to care for the nearly 1000 indigenous trees that have thus far been planted as part of this program. When planting a tree you receive a tree planter’s certificate, are listed on the TREE PLANTERS PAGE, and the locality of your tree is recorded and mapped using a GPS so that you can keep an eye on it from your home on Google Earth. If you have already planted a tree, input the co-ordiantes of your tree into the text boxes below and see where it is!
By supporting the Future Trees project you are taking a step towards offsetting your carbon footprint (for example the carbon produced by your long-haul flight), combatting global warming, replacing the trees that are cut down support our lifestyles, and greening the world we all live in. The Future Trees project supports and collaborates with the Green Futures Nursery, which supplies the trees we plant. In this way your donation is spread amongst the projects of the Grootbos Foundation.
Please enter the Latitute (south) and Longitude (east) of your tree. Remember that because South Africa is in the southern hemisphere, you need to add a minus (”-”) before your latitude to get the right location.
e.g. for co-ordinates of 34.54314 South and 19.41454 East, enter -34.54314 in Latitude and 19.41454 in Longitude.
Latitude:
Longitude:
