palmyra

 

Other birds like palm swifts, silver bills, white-breasted kingfishers and shikras have been observed on them. Many women are turning entrepreneurs, making snacks using palm jaggery.

Suresh. 15 lakh) per annum. As leaves were periodically pruned, the long and sturdy leaf bases were used as fences and the leaves as a roofing material. This led to farmers selling palms in their land and village committees selling those in common land, as firewood to brick kilns.

According to Veil Muthu P., chief editor of a popular Tamil magazine, palmyra acts as a natural barrier against climatic forces. V, a diploma holder in mechanical engineering, quit his job in a reputed company, to sell Lungu, the jelly-like tender seeds. “The root structure is such that it stabilises the soil, and conserves soil moisture,” said Prabhu T., of Agricultural College and Research Institute, Killikulam.

Palms grow in all types of soil and climatic zones. Rasu Mayilvahanan and his friends, all working professionals, promote sustainability and livelihood, by engaging women to make palm leaf products. “I earned Rs. The returns have to be attractive enough for an artisan,” he added.

Difficulty in climbing palmyrah trees that grow to 30 metres is a deterrent. Palmyrah is the state tree of Tamil Nadu and has ecological and economic value, aids biodiversity conservation and is climate-resilient.

With an observed drop in palmyra count, various actions to protect the tree are underway and there is a clear need to consider the promotion of its cultivation.

The narrow two-lane road from Nagapattinam to Thiruvarur is flanked by paddy fields, with palmyrah trees demarcating the road and the fields. “Attempts to make shorter varieties have been unsuccessful,” said Narasimha Murthy G., of Horticultural Research Station at Pandirimamidi, Andhra Pradesh, one of the centres of All India Coordinated Research Project (AICRP) on palms. Even Mangalore tiles had been blown away from roofs, but not this roof of palm leaves,” he said.

The fibrous roots that go deep and wide bind the soil well, preventing soil erosion. With an average yield of 150 litres of padhaneer or neera sap extracted from the inflorescence, 25 kg of jaggery, 15 kg of palm sugar and non-edible products such as fibre, leaves and coir, Veilmuthu estimates an average income of Rs. According to Samuel, more than a million (10 lakh) people lost their jobs because of the ban.

With the younger generation preferring other jobs, the number of climbers declined. The leathery leaves are also sturdy against heavy rains and winds. Places such as Sikkal and Manjakkollai, though more than five kilometres from the Bay of Bengal, bore the brunt of Cyclone Gaja that hit the east coast on November 16, 2018. “Peacocks rest on them and sunbirds drink nectar from the inflorescence,” he said. 3,500 from one tree. Now that we know the health benefits of palm products, we need to conserve them,” said Manivannan Gandhi, of PanaiOlai, which has planted 3,500 palm seeds around Madurai.

Proponents find toddy in moderate amounts healthful. “The damage to Cuddalore and other coastal areas caused by cyclones Thane and Nilam could have been vastly minimised if thousands of palmyrah trees had not been cut,” he said.

Climate resilience

Taller than coconut trees, palms are sturdy and strong and do not fall easily. “In Thoothukudi and Tirunelveli, we found naturally occurring short varieties, flowering at four feet height. Photo by Samuel Theodore.

Featured Videos from TNM

Cyclone Gaja having demonstrated its sturdy nature, and its ability to lessen the impact of natural forces, the importance of the palmyra tree is being appreciated.

The ecological value of palmyra trees

Palmyrah trees are commonly seen between agricultural fields in Tamil Nadu. “They played a significant role in the circulation of water in aquifers,” he said, citing an academic paper. According to Sobhana Raj, botanist and retired principal of Scott Christian College, Nagercoil, the root has a central fibre surrounded by a spongy layer that stores water. It’s part of our legacy. “We inherited rich Tamil literary treasures including epics Silappadhikaram and Manimekalai in palm leaf manuscripts. However, palmyra was never considered a plantation crop.

“Tamil Nadu Palmgur and Fibre Marketing Federation (TNPFMF) started in 1956 to market palm products, continues to do so. With no canopy, it doesn’t interfere with buildings. “It was just about 500 metres from the sea. Having met with artisans of palm cooperatives, convincing them to make non-edible products too, he is hopeful of their sustainable livelihood. 13,000 in my job, now I earn double that,” he said. Photo by Jency Samuel.

There Kumar from Rayagiri in Tirunelveli district said that villagers sell a tree for Rs. Huge branches had snapped, trees lay uprooted and electric poles leaned precariously or were flat on the ground in a mangled mess of cables. 30 lakh). From the leaves being used for manuscripts to the split trunk being used as roof joists, palmyra trees had been an integral part of Tamil life. 150, without appreciating its economic value. “Toddy is not an intoxicant but a part of food and medicine,” said Nallasami C., of Tamil Nadu Toddy Movement.

“It doesn’t need space. They are seen in large numbers in coastal Nagapattinam, fertile Thanjavur and in arid Ramanathapuram.

Conservation and revival of the state tree

Besides their climate resilience, proponents of palmyrah cite other reasons for conserving them. Bird watchers have observed parakeets and Indian rollers nesting in palmyra trunks. However, most of the palmyrah trees stood firm and rooted. 3 million (Rs. Once concrete structures became popular, palmyra lost its importance.

In 1987, the Tamil Nadu government banned toddy, a fermented drink tapped from the inflorescence, adding to the decline of palmyra products. On a single palmyra tree, many baya weaver nests can be observed in villages.

A faunal shelter, trees are the choice of baya weaver birds for nesting. Trunks were used as rafters and pillars for house construction. To revive the same, youth, communities and some political parties have started planting seeds in public places.

Conservation without economic benefits holds no appeal. “We’ve developed post-harvest technologies and standardised procedures to make palm products. Given the awareness about their climate resilience and health benefits of palmyrah products, things are looking up for palmyra trees. Aaron Doss, a Chennai-based travel operator, observed how the palm-leaf roof of a hut at Vizhunda Mavadi village in Nagapattinam district was not damaged at all during Cyclone Gaja. “People used them to mark boundaries, given their long life of 120 years,” said Ranjit Daniels of Chennai-based Care Earth Trust which works on biodiversity conservation.

Planted around water bodies, they are believed to recharge water. 1.5 million (Rs. There is no superstition attached to the tree,” said Daniels. We’ve been selling 30 kg of jaggery every day since January 2019, proof that it’s commercially viable,” he said.

A senior official at TNPFMF said that the jaggery-dry ginger coffee they have been selling in Chennai for a year has earned them Rs. The government supports artisans, supplying free tools, and buying products from eight district federations,” said Naveen Kumar.

“After ten years, there won’t be any climber to tap neera, as it’s difficult to work and the present climbers are above 40 years,” said Annamalai, staff at TNPFMF. “Cut root exudes water. “The fibrous trunk has a sort of elasticity that enables it to bend and not break,” said Daniels of Care Earth Trust. In reality and industrial agriculture, they were considered worthless and axed, resulting in a significant loss in tree count.

A faunal shelter, palmyra trees are the choice of baya weaver birds for nesting. With changes in the cultural and social milieu, they lost their importance. Benaiah P.C, a scientist at the AICRP Pandirimamidi project, concurred that jaggery has good income potential. “In places like Chennai, prone to cyclone and rain, the government should promote planting them in public places.”

While government departments do not have a census, everyone agreed that the palmyra count has drastically reduced. He cited some traders selling adulterated jaggery weighing against the artisans. While coconut trees had snapped into two or even four parts, the palmyrah trees were intact.

Palmyrah (Borassus flabellifer) is the state tree of Tamil Nadu. Planted without much gap, the rows of trees prevented carnivores and elephants from venturing into villages, thus preventing human-animal conflict.

According to Godson Samuel, a priest and field director of Palmyrah Nation, which works on palmyrah conservation, the tree shelters birds and reptiles such as snakes and monitors lizards. As trees in each region have a different fruiting season, he is busy for eight months.

Selling edible tender seeds of palmyra fruit is more rewarding than a salaried job for Suresh. With about 450 trees per acre, a palmyra farmer could earn Rs. Though it has not been proven, the roots may help in recharging water,” he added.

Panchavarnam R., former chairman of Panruti panchayat and author of a book on Palmyra, said that they were traditionally planted where forests ended and human habitations started. Photo by Samuel Theodore

Toddy ban led to the decline of the palmyra

Earlier, all parts of living and dead trees found use in everyday activities of rural communities. “100 litres of neera yields 10 kg of jaggery and needs 100 kg of firewood. We have planted their seeds at Killikulam, but they flower after 15 years,” said Prabhu.

There Kumar, whose father sells jaggery to exporters, said that it is financially viable since men tap and women make jaggery by boiling neera. This helps them withstand heavy winds and cyclones.

“The crown of fan-shaped leaves is light in weight, lending it resilience against the wind,” said Panchavarnam.