Growing a micro-forest resource for wider knowledge
For experienced landscape architect and urban designer Robin Simpson of Wellington, the idea of taking part in PARK(ing) Day at the beginning of March was too good to pass up.
Robin’s motivation stemmed from a desire to contribute to the fun and energy she had seen the event attract in previous years, and from her love of living in the inner-city.
From there it just required an application to seed her concept of a Tiny Forest with the Wellington Sculpture Trust, and to then organise the details and logistics as one of the 30+ ‘car park’ sized encounters out on display along one block of Cuba Street on 1 March.
Tiny Forest being installed.
Robin: “We ensured we packed the Tiny Forest with lots of small details, down to things like Cicada shells. Children loved it and we heard comments from adults that it brought back special memories for them.
“I loved taking a small space to create a micro-forest and to point people to useable resources. Even at a small scale, it helped people envisage what it means to have more vegetation in a city environment”.
Robin created two banners for Tiny Forest. One featured four suggestions for anyone interested in embracing the concept of micro-forests at a local level:
Join a community planting group. Boost the tree planting efforts of local volunteers restoring bushland. Micro-forests can add ecological stepping stones.
Gather neighbours to plant scrubby areas near you. Envisage driving home through a forest gateway rather than asphalt and road signs. Talk to [your local council] about planting in local berms or parks.
Plant in community places like schools. Join your community and whānau to convert a maintenance liability into a living classroom.
Plant a micro-forest at home. Imagine bathing in your microforest instead of mowing lawn & trimming edges.
More information has been co-located by Robin on a supporting resource page that was easily accessed via a QR code on PARK(ing) Day.
As well as providing regional pointers this page included links to information about the Nelson Whakatu Microforest Initiative as well as background about the the Miyawaki Method of Microforests (see also Creating Tomorrow’s Forests).
A conversation about Canberra’s community micro-forests between popular ABC programme host and landscape architect Costa Georgiadis with landscape architect Edwina Robertson of The Climate Factory is available to view on YouTube and is especially recommended.
In 2024, Edwina’s social enterprise, The Climate Factory, established The Microforest Collective, a not-for-profit organisation dedicated to promoting more community climate-cooling microforests.
The second of Robin’s PARK(ing) banners is reproduced here:
Thanks for the work put into the Tiny Forest also went to: Ai Winters, Anna Nord, Bicycle Junction / Coffee Outdoors, Cheryl Robilliard, Garth Baker, Kapiti Treespace & Micro Forest Group, Nelson Whakatu Microforest Initiative, Nood, Outsiders, Riegers, Sandra Smilley, Stephanie Gardner Wellington Tenths Trust, WCC Berhampore Nursery, and WCC Ecospecialists and Rangers.