Creative DIY ideas post Vardah

It was indeed a devastating sight after the massive cyclone Vardah hit Chennai during December 2016.

Broken branches, fallen trees, mangled shrubs and creepers all along the road..all over the city was heart-rending.

Restoring trees is a costly affair and we do not have resources to effectively restore trees as yet.Though I believe some volunteer groups are at it which is really heart-warming.

We too were forced to cut a tree that had three crows' nests. The tree was 75% uprooted and precariously leaning over the roof. We deliberated for over a week and made sure the birds had abandoned their nests and gave in to the inevitable.

Somehow we did not have the heart to throw away the tree. For two reasons:

#1 It had become a part of our family, and supported 3-4 bird families.

#2 Wanted to minimize the load on landfill and the associated cost of transportation,fuel-usage,                 resultant pollution


Here is what we tried to do.
Tomato Cage

Most small branches were used as supports for slender plants like above.

Plant seats / Garden seats



There is a whole lot of creative things you can do with these sized-up tree trunks.

We are waiting for the barks to dry up and peel off after which we plan to give a coat of varnish to avoid fungal growth and use it as garden seats. 

Scoop out the center when still soft and plant small herbs like Tulasi, button rose etc.


Here is what we did with the bigger and sturdier branches that had a perfect 'Y' shape. One became a designer trellis for theBeetel leaf plant and the other for the Sanku poo plant.

Beetel leaf Plant creeper


  
Sanku poo 



















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