Plant a native tree, and keep it alive

Native trees have adapted over ages to this country’s soil, rain and heat. They give shade and fruit, hold the soil, and their flowers and fruit keep native birds, bees and butterflies alive. Choose for the place: mango, jamun or jackfruit in the yard; palmyra, arjun or hijal by a road or pond; neem beside the house. Planted at the start of the monsoon, a sapling takes root more easily. For advice, ask a nearby nursery or the upazila agriculture or forest office. Planting is not the end. For the first few years, water it in the dry season, fence it so goats and cattle cannot eat it, and keep the weeds down.