JHARKHAND : The Jharkhand Forest Department, in collaboration with the Pradan Foundation, has taken the initiative to boost the forest cover by planting an increasing number of fruit-bearing trees. As part of this effort, seed balls are thrown into the jungles by the villagers and allowed to germinate naturally, which later take the shape of trees. This is a community-led initiative and has been adopted by forest dwellers in six out of 12 blocks of Gumla -- Gumla, Ghaghra, Raidih, Palkot, Basia and Kamdara, involving 1,000 villagers in 40 villages.
Seed balls serve as a powerful tool for spreading native plants in forests. These compact spheres protect seeds, keeping them in place until they receive the necessary water for growth, typically through rainfall. The clay and soil shield the seeds from heavy winds and the sun’s heat, and the hard clay casing deter animals from consuming the seeds.
Once prepared, these balls are manually thrown into the jungles, where they become lodged between rocks and germinate over time. The objective is to increase the forest cover, which in turn attracts birds and insects, further developing the ecological system in the region. The seeds used in the seed balls are of high quality and locally sourced from well-ripened fruits or those that have naturally fallen undamaged from the trees. Ideal seeds for this initiative include sal, neem, tamarind, mango, jackfruit, mahua, and jamun.
Gumla DFO Belal Ahmed mentioned that the seed ball initiative has numerous benefits, including significantly boosting the regeneration potential of seeds. As a community-led initiative, it fosters a strong bond between villagers and the forest, leading them to see trees as their own children and to protect them, he said.
“Seed balls make a positive impact in the long run as they also help maintain the ecosystem of the forests, besides increasing forest cover. Since, everything, right from the seeds to the soil used for making seed balls, is taken from the same forest, it also helps in retaining the local flora and fauna in the forest,” DFO highlighted.
According to the Pradan officials, pitching seed balls is an old method of growing plants from seeds without preparing the land with a plough or other agricultural equipment.
In Gumla itself, as many as 6 lakh seed balls were prepared and spread all over the jungles in six blocks of Gumla; last year, 4 lakh seed balls were thrown as compared to 3 lakh in 2022, DFO informed.
Pradan district co-coordinator Md Meraj-ud-din said looking at the local requirements and weather conditions, it was decided to collect seeds of sal, mahua, sakhua, mango jamun, etc., from the jungle during the autumn season and conserve them by the villagers.
He added that they expect the vegetative growth of the jungles will increase in another 10-15 years. “Last year, 10 villages in each of the Blocks were involved in the initiative, but this time, we have involved only five villages so that the growth of the saplings can be tracked easily,” Meraj-ud-din said.
Similar initiatives are being taken at Kisko, Senha, and Kudu Blocks of Lohardaga.