On his small family plantation, Wawan combines hardwood species such as manglid and cadamba with short-term crops like cassava and ground nuts. As part of this multi-cropping approach, he also grows coffee because, as he explains, “it only takes 3 years to bear fruit, and the price is competitive.”  

 

Wawan also keeps sheep and believes there is a mutually beneficial relationship between livestock and farming. His flock provides him with organic fertilizer, while trimmed leaves from the trees are used as sheep feed. There’s also a financial incentive. As Wawan explains, “a healthy sheep can be sold for three-to-five million Rupiah (US$170-285). 

 

Through a combination of multi-cropping, circularity, and business savvy, Wawan has seen his lands and his livelihood improve over time. But the one thing he wants more of on his farm is tree cover, as it can increase water retention, stabilize the soil, and provide the shade his coffee trees need to grow healthily. In 2022, when the Citarum tree-planting program—initiated by Astra Zeneca, One Tree Planted, and Trees4Trees—started in Rongga District, he jumped at the chance to register, so he could receive free seedlings for his land.  

 

Back in 2022, Trees4Trees provided Wawan with 150 manglid and cadamba seedlings, which he chose because they were the most suitable species for his land. In 2023, he added avocado and clove trees after seeing other farmers successfully grow them in the area, which showed him the land was also suitable for them. And the results since have proved him right. 

 

“About 75% of my trees have survived and are growing well—especially the cadamba: this tree was planted in 2022, so it’s 4 years old now, and it’s already about 7 meters tall,” he says proudly, pointing up at the branches towering overhead. “My avocado trees are also doing really well,” he adds. 

 

With around 300 healthy trees now growing on his land, Wawan himself has grown from a farmer to the guardian of a small forest. Nature provides him, and he returns the favor; the quality of his soil has improved in parallel to ecosystem health, evidenced by a noticeable uptick in biodiversity. “Since my land became a forest, I’ve often had guests,” he says, with a smile. “Sometimes kutilang birds (bulbul), sometimes perkutut birds (zebra doves). Occasionally, even monkeys.” 

In addition to the return of wildlife, the dense tree cover on Wawan’s land is also helping revive a nearby spring. “The natural spring has been here a long time,” explains Wawan, “but the water would often be reduced to a trickle, especially during the dry season; sometimes it would almost dry up completely.” 

 

As the trees on Wawan’s land have grown stronger, he has noticed more water flowing from the spring too. During the most recent dry season, the spring no longer dried up as it once did. “The spring keeps flowing with freshwater,” he says.  

 

Wawan is delighted to see nature bouncing back on his land, and proud to have played a part in the process of rejuvenation. He hopes this progress, like the trees he has planted, will continue to grow over time—and even help to mitigate the landslides and water shortages experienced by his community. 

Wawan’s story illustrates the many—sometime unexpected—benefits of planting trees. For local farmers and their families, for wildlife, and the natural resources on which they all depend, the future is looking brighter already. By supporting projects like this, we have an opportunity to benefit people and nature and regreen the world we share. 

 

Writer & Photos: V. Arnila Wulandani. Editor: Chris Alexander