A high school in Illinois has brought its own "tiny forest" to campus, per the Naperville Sun. Naperville Central High School has turned a small plot of land into a biodiverse mini forest.
The idea for the small forest began with senior Sabrina Tse, who dedicated her capstone course to designing the school forest.
"A tiny forest is not a tiny job," Tse told the Naperville Sun — part of the Chicago Tribune Media Group. Tse noted that bringing the project to life was "just an incredible team effort."
After developing her forest idea for almost a year, Tse spent the weekend planting the forest with her classmates and teachers.
In just under 1,100 square feet, Tse and her peers planted around 276 trees, including 37 different species. Though they're saplings now, the trees will eventually grow tall, blooming into a vibrant ecosystem. Located at the front of the school, the tiny forest welcomes students as they arrive at class.
Tse was inspired by Japanese botanist Akira Miyawaki's method for quickly restoring native forests. The foundation of the Miyawaki method is to rebuild the natural structure of a forest in a few decades rather than a few centuries, according to Chelsea Green Publishing.
Gardeners can achieve this by preparing the soil and planting a diverse range of native plants in dense clumps. This serves as the basis for a tiny forest.
By planting the seedlings close together, the Miyawaki method encourages the species to compete with one another for space, sunlight, and water. This triggers much faster growth, with trees growing about 10 times faster, per the Naperville Sun.
Tse and her classmates are making a big impact with their tiny forest. Densely packed with diverse species, the forest has the potential to turn into a thriving habitat that supports a wide array of organisms.
🗣️ Do you think America does a good job of protecting its natural beauty?
🔘 Definitely 👍
🔘 Only in some areas ☝️
🔘 No way 👎
🔘 I'm not sure 🤷
🗳️ Click your choice to see results and speak your mind
"The fact that [a tiny forest] can be placed in a variety of different locations is really compelling because biodiversity loss usually has to be combated very locally," Tse told the Naperville Sun. "It's not a one-size-fits-all solution."
Tse also hopes her actions inspire other communities to take action.
"It's going to help this community," she told the Naperville Sun. "And if the next community learns about it, then maybe they'll do a little bit better. And as you scale it, local change ends up being really important because if no one did local change, you'd never have global change."
Join our free newsletter for good news and useful tips, and don't miss this cool list of easy ways to help yourself while helping the planet.
Cool Picks
