We all have a part to play
My visit to the Kivukoni Indigenous Tree Nursery was incredibly informative, and what screamed out to me was one thing, more people need to know about the incredible work going on here and the importance of indigenous, because ultimately as much as I learnt from my tour, Norbert was preaching to the already converted, I personally would always choose the ‘messier’ looking landscape over manicured lawns. But we are all different and our preferences vary, however, I am here to tell you, there doesn’t need to be a choice of one or the other, people can opt for indigenous and have a pretty manicured lawn too!
Later on, while doing some research, it was disheartening to see very little online of the importance of growing indigenous, instead, there were thousands upon thousands of gardening tips for popular species like the jacaranda, none of these ever noted any negatives or tried to encourage people to garden responsibly, all was pushing the jacaranda agenda. I guess because you can’t make money on what is already there. To my relief, there were one or two articles on the negatives of palms, but only if you are looking for them, otherwise, you will be inundated with best planting practices and encouraged to buy for your garden.
We have much to do to save these indigenous coastal forests and we can all start in our gardens. No matter where you are in the world, the same concept applies, so do your part, spread the message and let’s all go indigenous!
Takeaway Messages
- Do your research: check out what indigenous species there are in your area and do your best to plant them instead of the exotics, I almost guarantee there will be an indigenous alternative.
- Avoid creating a green desert: think of the wildlife in your garden and the surrounding area, there is nothing more beautiful than a ‘buzzing’ garden full of butterflies, bees and mammals.
- Don’t assume: it was clear that a lot of what I had heard about indigenous was not completely correct, so going back to my first point, do your research.
- Spread the word: this is probably the most important point, knowledge is power, and a lack of has seen huge changes to our landscape, we need more people to know why it is so important to plant indigenous. People need the knowledge before they can change their behaviour.
- Change our mind frame: We need to get out of this mind frame that exotics are better because, in the majority of cases, they simply are not.
- Finally, if you are lucky enough to live in a beautiful place like the Kenyan coastline, count your lucky stars and give back by respecting the land you call home.
Valor to Virtue hopes to be working with the Kivukoni Indigenous Tree Nursery in the near future on reforestation projects along the coast. if you would like to learn more, support the initiative or have any questions, please contact us at [email protected].