TIST India - Chezhumai / April 2008
Chezhumai
TIST India
The International Small Group & Tree
TIST India: Mew No.52, Guru Ram Flats, Flat D, Venkat Ratnam Nagar, Adyar, Chennai 600 020, Tamil Madu, India
Phone : +91 44 42188438 / Mobile: +91 9840299822 { Email: josephrexon@tist.org
Helpline
® To introduce your friends/relatives in TIST Program contact Authi Krishnaswamy (Program Coordinator) in 9940615322
® To know quality seedling vendors contact Natraj (Coordinator) in 9940615324
2 If you have started a nursery or planted trees and wanted to inform TIST about that, contact Karunagaran (Coordinator) in 9940615323
= If you have any difficulty in TIST Program like disease in your trees/seedlings, not getting your voucher in time contact A.Joseph Rexon {Program Director), in 9840299822
Kamatchiyamman Small Group of Thurinjapuram Center
This Small Group is following the best practices of TIST at Karapallan Village in Thurinjapuram Center. They have 430 Teak Trees in their land. The members of this group took great care while planting these trees. They did not plant all the trees immediately, which is a difficult task to take care, instead, they planted the trees in intervals of 2-3 months gap. The members are doing intercroppings too like, groundnut & grams. The members have setup their home near their trees in the field to have a watch over their trees and intercroppings.
Shriya Small Group of Mel Kodungalur
This group has started a nursery with 2000 teak seedlings. The members say that, this is the right time to
start a nursery, so that, during the monsoon season, these seedlings can be transplanted. This nursery is
setup very close to few banana trees, so that, it is easy for the members to water these seedlings while
watering the banana trees, moreover, there is some shade near the banana trees, which protects these Teak Seedlings: Shriya Small Group of Mel Kodungalur Gas
Forest Extension Centre of Poondi organized a meeting at Placepalayam to enlighten the villagers on the importance of trees. TIST Program Coordinator and Assistant Program Coordinator participated in the meeting and gave a talk about TIST Program to the villagers
On 22-3-08, the Poondi Forest Extension Centre conducted its information meeting among farmers at Placepalayam. Mr. Muniyan, the Forest Range Officer participating in the meeting and explained about the activities of Forest Extension Centre. He in his address said that they are to make and distribute free seedlings to the farmers, that too, to the need and the likings of the farmers. So, farmers should immediately inform the Forest Extension Centre what tree species they would prefer to plant in their lands.Moreover, he said that they are to make,seedlings like Kumuli, lluppai, and Marudhu in the Forest Extension Centre to distribute to the farmers. During the meeting,
TIST India Program Coordinator, Mr.Authikrishna Swamy explained about TIST Program to the participants and said that the farmers can handover their filled in application forms to TIST too for getting free seedlings from Forest Extension Centre. As most of the farmers of Placepalayam are members in the TISTProgram, the members can also get the free seedlings to plant in their lands and TIST would certainly make voucher payment. To conclude with, Mr.Thananjeyan, the organizer of Melmaruvathur Farmer's Forum said thatas TIST India is encouraging its Small Group members by giving voucher payments for their live trees, the activities of the Forest Extension Centre would
certainly get a good run in Placepalayam.
TIST India Program Coordinator, Mr.Authikrishna Swamy addressing at the Poondi Forest Extension Centre information meeting
Seedlings arrangement
TIST has identified two experts, who are very good in making Teak and Sandalwood Seedlings. These
two experts would be camping in Tiruvallur, Vandhavasi and Tiruvannamalai area for next two months to
form nursery few groups. Small Groups who are interested in Teak and Sandalwood Seedlings contact
your Coordinator immediately and make use of this opportunity. ‘Yes, this is the right time for starting
seedlings, so that, you can transplant the seedlings during coming monsoon. Moreover, TIST makes
voucher payment from seedling stage itself. If you start a nursery now, by coming monsoon, you would
get one quarter voucher before monsoon, which will be a good financial support while transplanting.
Use your available land and water effectively
There is no human life without forest and agriculture; they are like two wheels for a vehicle, without one wheel
the vehicle does not move. Same way,human life requires both forest and agriculture. Members are requested
not to leave their land abandoned. Your land will get you wonders, provided you put your efforts in right way. While choosing a seedling/tree, choose those trees, which would give you good yield, apart from TIST voucher. Do not stop your work after planting trees. Practice the good system of intercropping. Do not forget the traditional system of farming. Yes, it is difficult to get laborers to do farming in large scale, but you can always do
the farming in small scale, wherein your own help will be sufficient for you.
Members of Ayyanaar Small Group of Semboondy are using their land effectively with the available little water, They are practicing groundnut, grams and watermelon regularly in their land. This way, this group is getting additional earning and when this earning is combined with TIST voucher, their total earning becomes very good.
New Small Groups
Last two months, more than 200 Small Groups have joined in TIST Program in Centers like, Thiruthani, Chetpet and Kandhavarady. These new Small Groups are requested to the following immediately:
+ Call your quantifier to make a baseline quantification of your land where you would be planting trees. Get your copy of SGMR book from the quantifier
Open saving bank account in your group name with help of your quantifier
Start nursery immediately contact your Coordinator for help
Important: Follow all the 15 points of eligibility requirement given by TIST
South Indian Mahua
South Indian Mahua is a variety of Mahua which is predominently found in South India. It differs from the
usual Mahua in that its leaves are narrower. Mohua is one of the most important of Indian forest trees, not
because it may possess valuable timber - and it is hardly ever cut for this purpose - but because of its
delicious and nutritive flowers. It is a tree of abundant growth and, to the people of Central India, it
provides their most important article of food as the flowers can be stored almost indefinitely. itis large and
deciduous with a thick, grey bark, vertically cracked and wrinkled. Most of the leaves fall from February to
April, and during that time the musky-scented flowers appear. They hang in close bunches of a dozen or
so from the end of the gnarled, grey branchlets. The reddish young leaves with the flower clusters look
very attractive. The flower stalks are green or pink and furry, about 5 cm. long. The plum-coloured calyx is
also furry and divides into four or five lobes; within them lies the globular corolla, thick, juicy and creamy
white. Through small eyelet holes at the top, the yellow anthers can be seen. The stamens are very short
and adhere to the inner surface of the corolla; the pistil is a long, protruding green tongue. lt is at night that
the tree blooms and at dawn each short-lived flower falls to the ground. A couple of months after the
flowering period the fruit opens. They are fleshy, green berries, quite large and containing from one to four
shiny, brown seeds.
Medicinal uses: Medicinally the tree is very valuable. The bark is used to cure leprosy and to heal
wounds, tne flowers are prepared to relieve coughs, biliousness and heart-trouble while the fruit is given
in cases of consumption and blood diseases.
TIST Small Group Eligibility Requirements
Here are the main requirements that have to me met by Small Group to qualify for the TIST Program
+ There should be 6 to 12 members in your Small Group from atleast 3 different families.
Each Small Group should have a minimum of 1,000 live trees within 1-year after joining the TIST program.
Each Small Group should have a minimum of 5,000 live trees within 5-years after joining the TIST program.
Your Small Group should replant trees that die, for any reason, each year for atleast 20 years
All Small Groups should sign the Greenhouse Gas contract.
TIST will pay US$ 0.03 (Rs. 1.50) per live tree per year (please review Greenhouse gas contract for more details
on payment)
Tree species that are treated as bushes or hedges (less than 4 meters tall) would not be counted as TIST trees.
Trees planted at a spacing of less than 2 meters will not be counted as TIST trees, older. However, total trees harvested in any year should not exceed 5% of the group's total live trees. rotation trees” (example Eucalyptus). Present groups who have planted much more than 33% short rotation trees will have five years (until 2012) to plant additional trees and or harvest present trees until they meet this requirement.
TIST Small Groups should allow TIST quantifiers to come and quantify their trees once a year. Small Groups should
organize with other Small Groups in their area to provide food and shelter for the quantifiers during these annual
quantification visits.
Members of each Small Group should meet together to share ideas and best practices every week. If meetinevery week is not possible then group members should meet atleast once a month.
Small Group members should provide proof of land ownership or control for land where they have planted TIST
trees.
Small Group members should participate in TIST training to help develop and share best practices with other TIST
groups.
The area where your Small Group is located should haveother Small Groups, that are all within walking distance of |each other, that have planted a combined total of 100,000 live trees within 1-year with a potential to plant a combined total of 300,000 trees in 5-years.
TIST will allow harvesting of live trees that are 10 years or | Each Small Group should have less than 33% "short |
Are you ready with your seedlings for transplanting?
Sign the GHG agreement and take the Voucher Payment.
Answer: For the GHG business to work,species of trees planted should yield good amount of carbon. This is why TIST does not petal want people to plant certain species thatare &miding. bushes and not trees. Also, TIST wants WIKIES MATHS people to plant species which they will keep siding). alive for a long period and not cut them down -in a short time.