Sometimes really big ideas come in small packages or, in this case, trunks. Microforests or “pocket forests” are the latest weapon in environmentalists’ war against habitat loss and climate change. Comprised of a large variety of native shrubs and trees planted in close proximity to one another on small plots of land, microforests are the brainchild of Japanese botanist, Akira Miyawaki. The microforest movement is quickly taking on steam worldwide as benefits to air, water, and soil quality from these smaller growths are proving impactful. 

The concept takes advantage of a natural phenomenon: by densely planting trees (roughly 10-12’ apart), scientists are capitalizing on shade competition, a natural phenomenon where trees grow quickly to prevent being “shaded out” by other trees. Densely planting large numbers of native shrubs and trees together accelerates tree growth while capitalizing on native fungi that improve soil quality. The end result is a quickly created replacement “forest” with the benefits of its trees in a place far faster than planting a single tree alone. In fact, microforests have shown to be as mature and diverse in 20 to 30 years as a 100-year-old forest.

What seems like a simple concept has proven to yield powerful results: microforests can help offset the loss of natural forests which have provided food and shelter to vital plants, bacteria, and animals. The movement’s ace card can be found in its name: micro. Rather than trying to encourage people or governments to devote large parcels of potentially valuable land to nature, scientists are looking for an acre here and there that can be left alone. These smaller spots allow nature to have an oasis within our ever-growing and resource-demanding world. 

Trees and forests have long been a defense against extreme weather, stormwater migration, air quality, and soil erosion. As our world’s weather patterns continue to shift and become more and more extreme, we could use all the help these microforests can give us.