The necessity to protect kadamba trees in the city and to plant more of them was highlighted during a nature walk organised in Chockalingapuram village near Vadipatti on Sunday to document the century-old kadamba tree there.
The event was organised by the Department of Communication, Madurai Kamaraj University, as part of its ongoing initiatives in collaboration with National Council for Science and Technology Communication to sensitise young people from different fields on environmental issues.
S. Nagarathinam, Head, Department of Communication, said that though Madurai had historically been renowned for the abundant presence of kadamba trees , the species had become a rarity.
“Last month, our team visited Vellimalai forest which had a few kadamba trees. We were shocked to see that they had been felled,” he said.
The team, with the help of S. Baburaj, former Associate Professor of Botany, Thiagarajar College, identified a kadamba tree, which is more than 100-years-old, in Chockalingapuram for documentation. Mr. Baburaj said that, apart from felling, a primary reason for the decline in propagation of kadamba trees was the fact that the tree produced only a small amount of seeds every year. “Moreover, the conditions for germination are not favourable due to scant presence of proper pollinators such as insects and butterflies,” he said.
Pointing out that Chockalingapuram residents associated spiritual and medicinal values with the tree, Mr. Nagarathinam said that the belief in the village was that proper flowering of the tree was an indication of good monsoon.
‘Didn’t flower last year’
“Last year, the tree did not flower. This year, it has started flowering,” he said.
Arguing that trees native to the geography played a crucial role in environmental protection, Mr. Baburaj said that concerted efforts should be made to spread kadamba trees in Madurai.
