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I've become really obsessed with 'Miyawaki Forests' lately - small, dense, urban forests which can reach a mature state in only a few years. I hope they start s
by Mizza 3y ago
I've become really obsessed with 'Miyawaki Forests' lately - small, dense, urban forests which can reach a mature state in only a few years. I hope they start showing up everywhere. Fuck minimum parking requirements, where are the minimum forest requirements?
- FredPret 3y agoIncredible - apparently you can do one in your back yard! https://canadiangeographic.ca/articles/the-many-benefits-of-the-minuscule-but-mighty-miyawaki-forests/ https://canadiangeographic.ca/articles/the-many-benefits-of-...
- crazygringo 3y agoI'm having a hard time picturing what they look like -- and the photo in that article is unrelated. Googling them, I can find images of a few proof-of-concept plots in the middle of fields but I can't find a single example of how they might integrate with a city. It would be nice to see some kind of before-and-after, even if just an illustration, to get a sense of how they would fit into a cityscape aesthetically and practically.
- burkaman 3y agoHere's a NYT article with some good photos, gift link: https://www.nytimes.com/2023/08/24/climate/tiny-forests-climate-miyawaki.html?unlocked_article_code=1.Yk0.ks58.DcgYBhM_lD5P&smid=url-share https://www.nytimes.com/2023/08/24/climate/tiny-forests-clim... Here's a photo of what it looks like when it's first planted: https://voice.somervillema.gov/miyawaki-micro-forest https://voice.somervillema.gov/miyawaki-micro-forest
- 3D30497420 3y agoAnother good article: https://www.creatingtomorrowsforests.co.uk/blog/the-miyawaki-method-for-creating-forests https://www.creatingtomorrowsforests.co.uk/blog/the-miyawaki...
- Luc 3y agoPDF with lots of pictures and information: https://urban-forests.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/05/Report-on-studying-Miyawaki-forests-in-Belgium-060923.pdf https://urban-forests.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/05/Report-...
- JadeNB 3y agoThey're surely extremely region-specific—sourcing with native trees is a big part of their sustainability. Do you know anything about where to find local growing guides for different regions?
- burkaman 3y agoHere's one site that seems solid: https://nativeplantfinder.nwf.org/ https://nativeplantfinder.nwf.org/ Note though that your climate is changing, and what was historically considered native for your region may no longer be a good fit: https://heatmap.news/is-native-gardening-becoming-pointless https://heatmap.news/is-native-gardening-becoming-pointless
- Aromasin 3y agoI'd love to know if there was an equivalent one for species native to the UK. EDIT: Found a great list after a little investigation! https://www.north-norfolk.gov.uk/tasks/projects/miyawaki-forest-project/ https://www.north-norfolk.gov.uk/tasks/projects/miyawaki-for...
- pvaldes 3y agoThat 3x3m project shown is not realistic. Not for a newbie and probably not easy to keep from falling apart for an expert. But yes, wild hedgewoods of a mix of useful shrubs are totally doable even in really small spaces. I had designed a few. They are low maintenance, beautiful, useful, funny, and tasty and everybody should have space for one of this wildlife lifesavers in their gardens.
- jay_kyburz 3y agoI bought three boxes of Microforest from Edwina Robinson here in ACT Australia and planted them in my front yard. Here is an article about her project. https://www.abc.net.au/news/2021-07-08/act-micro-forests-in-canberra-offer-hope-against-climate-change/100274670 https://www.abc.net.au/news/2021-07-08/act-micro-forests-in-... It's been two years, the some of the trees are well over 2m tall already.
- defrost 3y agoHere's video footage of the linked 2021 Canberra plantings from nine months ago - mid 2023. https://youtu.be/P2_YVkfzpnE?t=23 https://youtu.be/P2_YVkfzpnE?t=23
- lostlogin 3y agoPossibly a misconception of mine; Australia has some added complexities that not all of us face. What creatures will my mini forest it attract and will my little forest set fire to my home? I’m in New Zealand where life is less spicey.
- stubish 3y agoYou choose what species get planted, so you can control all that. Plant a grove of mainly sheoak for example, and you have fire retardant species that discourage snakes.
- deleted 3y ago[deleted]
- mobilemidget 3y agoAccidentally I recently looked up when a bunch of trees are, or can be called a forest. Which I learned is minimal 500 square meters.
- thfuran 3y agoHow many trees have to be in that region?
- mobilemidget 3y agoIt doesn't really mention that. And seems to differ between US and EU already, one source for example, says, "Forest is a land area of more than 0.5 ha, with a tree canopy cover of more than 10%, which is not primarily under agricultural or other specific non-forest land use." -- https://agridata.ec.europa.eu/Qlik_Downloads/InfoSheetSectorial/infoC29.html https://agridata.ec.europa.eu/Qlik_Downloads/InfoSheetSector...
- quixoticelixer- 3y agoThere isn't actually a strict definition of what is or isn't a forest
- mobilemidget 3y agoWell there are definitions, but indeed, not strict, as they do differ quite a bit who or where you ask this question.
- lostlogin 3y agoIf it’s small area you can’t see a forest, you can see trees.
- jimkleiber 3y agoFrom minimum parking requirements to minimum park requirements :-) Ok maybe minimum forest requirements is more accurate but had to do it
- nemo8551 3y agoI like the first one, down with minimum parking requirements we want more requirements for minimum parks! RaRa.
- darth_avocado 3y agoThe idea that everything needs to be a dense forest is a problem. What is more helpful is a variety of ecosystems available. I don't have a lot of space, but I managed to have 4 ecosystems in all of my yards with 200+ species of plants: California chaparral, Coastal forest, Xeriscape and a wildflower meadow. Cities could also build such environments and that would be more positive than just planting Miyawaki Forests everywhere.
- binonsense 3y agoI can’t imagine these forests will pop up “everywhere”. Seems like a groundless concern.
- Affric 3y ago> I hope they start showing up everywhere. For people in urban hellscapes? Yes. For non-human animals? More complicated. These sorts for forests are generally dominated by “edge species”. Edge species generally do relatively well out of habitat fragmentation. The most sensitive species that need a lot of depth in forest generally don’t do well with these small pockets. This is not to say that Miyawaki forests aren’t an improvement, just that their “conservation” value is limited and still need to preserve/manage huge amounts of actual contiguous forest with a minimum perimeter compared to the area covered.
- TulliusCicero 3y agoThat's fair. It's definitely a complementary thing, you want both types of forest I'm sure. Small forests don't cover all the needs, and large forests don't fit everywhere.
- ggm 3y agoI don't disagree but if the choice is between edge forest and species support for species in edge forests, or carparks and species support for carpark friendly species, I would prefer to have edge forest species. This is not re-wilding. We aren't trying to get urban badgers and lions. So, in summary I think your critique is true but misplaced. Consider the viable alternatives, not the pipe dream. When we de-populate on the next virus, we can re-forest for bears.
- Affric 3y agoWe actually can affect development patterns, deforestation, and afforestation through democracy. I am not against Miyawaki forests but I think we need to recognise they are largely for people. They vastly improve important metrics for us but in the press for Miyawaki forests the benefits for forests are sometimes conflated with the benefits of Miyawaki forests. It’s a little like when growing afforestation for the sake of timber is sold as a benefit to the environment as though it’s just like any other forest. TFA is about urban overheating. Biodiversity is a powerful idea and valued aesthetic in our society but ultimately biodiversity will only be conserved through a cessation of deforestation and significant afforestation on large scales.
- pvaldes 3y agoAs a rule of thumb if is associated to a fancy name, it has been invented before, and the plan will not fulfill its promises. "Forests will reach a mature state in only a few years" is just other of this marketing statements that sound nice, but are wrong. > Fuck minimum parking requirements, where are the minimum forest requirements? I want a t-shirt with this phrase. Is simply brilliant