New Island Native Tree Maintenance Day - The Day Before Typhoon 8

2017.12.20

October 14^th, 2017 – Cloudy with sunny intervals, possible occasional showers and moderate east winds. On this early morning, a group of New Island staff voluntarily participated in a Hong Kong Native Tree Maintenance Program hosted by Ark Eden Foundation Ltd.

Ark Eden Foundation is a Non-profit organization and leading Permaculture Education Centre in Hong Kong. Ark Eden promotes sustainable solutions for global environmental and social problems though running programs on food, building, water, waste, energy, natural and sustainable living systems.

New Island physically and financially supports non-profit organizations whose aims are to support, educate, promote and sustain a positive future to our community, society and the environment. Ark Eden upholds the qualities in which New Island has defined as worthy and highly respectful. Ark Eden reaches out to raise awareness in how to create positive change in order to safe guard and reinforce our rich natural resources to ensure a plentiful future for all.

On this day, New Island staff were given the knowledge on how beautifully rich Hong Kong’s native trees were and the problems which exist to keep these wonderful species alive. Soil erosion and the lack of nourishment within the soil made it difficult for new plantation to survive or grow. To help restoration, our first task was to carry Ark-Eden’s self-made organic fertilizer to designated plantation zones which are on Lantau Island’s hill. These areas are Country Park and protected by government.

Our second task was to collect data of previously planted trees, by firstly locating them, marking their numbers and recording their progress. We nourish these young struggling trees with the organic fertilizers we bought up. Lastly, our task was to pull dry grass or weed away to give room for those trees to grow. We needed to cover the fertilized areas with the dry grass to keeping it from evaporation.

Here are some of the highlights of our fruitful fun day. New Island gratefully thanks Ark Eden for being such a wonderful host and for sharing so many meaningful stories of Lantau’s nature. New Island staff have benefited from this special event and we will continue to take a foot forward to a building a sustainable future.