Desher Kaj
Tree guards and summer watering
Ringing a road’s young saplings with bamboo guards and watering them in turns, morning and evening, through the summer, so that planted trees live.
Area
Chuadanga
People
6 people
Time
About 10 hours
Difficulty
Easy
About this task
A list of the young saplings along one or two kilometres of road: which have no guard, which are drying out. Bamboo guards around the unguarded ones, a small ridge round each base to hold water. Then four weeks of summer watering in turns, morning or evening, by bucket, each day in a register.
Why it matters
Every monsoon many saplings are planted, but cattle and goats eat many and the summer dries out more. Keeping planted saplings alive costs less than planting new ones, and grown trees give the road shade in the heat.
What changes after
At least thirty saplings protected by guards; a four-week watering register; a nearby shop or household has taken on watering afterwards.
Who can join
Anyone; with nearby shopkeepers and residents, the watering turns are easier.
Step by step
- 1Done
List the saplings and get permission120 min
One to two kilometres of road: which saplings lack guards, which are drying. Tell the municipality or union council.
- 2Done
Bamboo guards240 min
Bamboo guards around unguarded saplings, out of reach of cattle and goats; loosen the soil and make a small ridge round each base.
- 3Done
Watering in turns240 min
Four summer weeks, morning or evening; water by bucket from a nearby shop or home. Date and name in the register.
Checklist to get ready
- Bamboo tree guards · ৩০টি
- Rope · প্রয়োজনমতো
- Buckets · ৬টি
When it counts as done
- At least thirty saplings guarded, in before and after photos
- A four-week watering register
Proof required: Before photo, After photo, Document
⚠ Safety
Work from the roadside, never in the carriageway; wear bright clothes. No work in the midday sun.
What it costs
| Bamboo guards (ready-made, or bamboo to make them) | 30 | ৳100–220 |
| Nylon rope | 2 bundles | ৳100–200 |
| Buckets | 6 | ৳150–300 |
| Drinking water and a light snack | 6 people | ৳60–100 |
| Total (about) | ৳3,500–8,000 | |
Getting ready, step by step
7 days before
Walk the road and list the saplings: guard or not, leaves green or not.
Give the road authority a letter; keep the received copy.
3 days before
Get the guards and rope; ask a nearby shop or home about taking water.
On the day
Before photos, then guards and ridges round the bases.
Start the watering register.
The four weeks after
Water in turns; the lead checks once a week.
Who does what
- Lead (1): Speaks with the authority, keeps the rota, checks weekly. — ____________
- Guard team (3): Set guards, tie rope, loosen the soil at the base. — ____________
- Watering rota (2): Water on their days and sign the register. — ____________
The day, hour by hour
- 07:00Gather, bright clothes, safety talk (never in the carriageway).
- 07:15Before photo of each sapling.
- 07:30Set guards, tie rope, make ridges.
- 09:30First watering; after photos from the same angle.
- 10:00Hand over the watering register, done.
What can go wrong, and what to do
- Traffic on the road → Work only from the roadside; one person watches the traffic; no children at the road edge.
- Falling ill in the heat → No midday work; water and shade; anyone dizzy lies down in the shade; call 999 if serious.
- The rota falling apart → Give each sapling to a nearby resident; the lead phones weekly.
Useful numbers
- 333Government information, services and complaints
- 999National emergency: police, fire, ambulance (free)
Questions people ask
- When is the best time to water?
- Morning or evening, when the sun is low; at midday the water dries off fast.
- Should we replant where a sapling died?
- Plant in the monsoon, native species. Get saplings from a Forest Department or local nursery, with the road authority’s permission.
- Can I join if I cannot stay the whole time?
- Yes. Say in your request which step or which hours you can do. The lead will give that step to you.