Tree planting is an important and globally recognized way to mitigate climate change. It is also effective in reducing the effects of flooding, preventing erosion, and storing water. Afforestation can be used to protect endangered species and provide habitat for animals that have been previously destroyed by human activities.
Mie Prefecture has 370,000 hectares of forest, or 65 percent of the prefecture's land area, of which 5,365 hectares are in Komono Town. Komono Town has a forest coverage of 50 percent. Private forests cover 350,000 ha, the majority of the prefecture's forest area.
Of the 350,000 ha of privately owned forests, 220,000 are planted forests and 130,000 ha are natural forests and others.
The environment surrounding forest management and forestry is currently characterized by deteriorating profitability, an aging population and a lack of skilled forestry personnel, as well as a lack of community-based forest maintenance.
Against this background, we believe it is important to stop the ever-increasing saturation of forests.
Forests have some form of public interest function, regardless of whether they are human or natural forests, but in order for them to function sustainably, it is important to establish a framework in which not only forest owners and forestry workers can work together, but also the townspeople, companies, and municipalities that live in the area.
Protect forests. Protecting the forest: Planting trees in the forest helps protect the area from wildfires and pests. They also help keep the surrounding soil and water healthy, which is important for plants to grow.
Prevent landslides. In areas where there is a lot of rain and snow, parts of the ground can shift and move. Planting trees stabilizes the soil and keeps it from shifting underfoot when heavy rain or snow falls!
Prevent desertification. Deserts usually occur because people have cut down all the vegetation or exhausted groundwater sources (which work to return water to the ground). Planting more trees near these areas will absorb more carbon dioxide than if they were left alone. In other words... So global warming can be curbed.
Komono Town in Mie Prefecture is located on the eastern side of the main Suzuka Mountains, and most of the mountainous strata are granite.
Suzuka granite is a massive grayish-white rock ranging in color from gray to slightly lighter, and includes quartzite pegmatite, granite, and semi granite, and the color may vary slightly depending on where it is mined.
The Otaka Plateau in Sugitani, Komono-cho, where we live, is composed of granite, but there are also sandstone and mudstone layers.
Granite is easy to work and has been used for construction and crafts, and in modern times, many shrine lanterns and water bowls have been preserved. There is a stone lantern and a guidepost of Otaka Kannon (Goddess of Mercy) adjacent to the erosion control forest.
After World War II, especially after the Ise Bay Typhoon, demand for stones increased, and they are now widely used as natural stones for gardens, gravel, and other purposes.
The mountains and forests are rich in resources, and it is extremely important to restore them to the state where they can be utilized as easily as in the past. Neglected mountain environments have been devastated and spectacular mountain disasters have occurred in many parts of Japan.
In August 2014, torrential rains caused a landslide in Hiroshima City; in 2018, a massive landslide was triggered by the Iburi earthquake in eastern Hokkaido; and in 2019, Typhoon No. 15's strong winds toppled a number of grove-rotting Yamatake cedars in Chiba Prefecture, resulting in large-scale, long-term power outages. Other natural disasters, such as record-breaking rainfall, earthquakes, and extreme weather events have occurred in many areas, making the land and forests unsustainable.
In Mie Prefecture, a torrential rainstorm caused by a rainy season front centered in the San'in region in 1988 brought 443 mm of rainfall to the urban area of Komono Town, causing extensive damage to many areas.
The "fuel revolution" has caused people to move away from forests, and the bright forests that used to be used by people have been replaced by dark forests densely covered with aging trees, rust and bamboo, and global warming.
In understanding forests, it is important to understand their multifaceted functions. Forests have many public functions, one of which is the function of preventing landslides and preserving the soil. In order to fulfill these functions, forests must be managed so that they remain healthy.
In particular, if man-made forests such as cedar and cypress are not properly managed, they will deteriorate and cease to fulfill their functions for the public good. In order to enhance biodiversity conservation, it is essential that secondary forests and man-made forests be properly managed on a sustainable basis.
Plant communities include: red pine - azalea community, cedar - cypress community, vertebrate - sakaki community (common in shrine and temple forests), evergreen coniferous forest, evergreen broad-leaved forest, and evergreen evergreen broad-leaved forest. In addition, moss communities and wetland vegetation can also be seen.
Up to an elevation of 850 m in the Suzuka Mountains
Oak trees such as Japanese cypress, tabunoki, Japanese white oak, yew oak, Japanese red oak, red oak, and white oak; evergreen trees such as black bai, Japanese umbrella pine, and blackberry; and shrubs on the forest floor such as yabutsubaki, dogwood, asebi, sakaki, and holly.
The shrub layer on the forest floor is composed of camellia japonica, dogwood, asebi, sakaki, holly, and other shrubs.
The vegetation in the mountains near Komono today is dominated by Quercus serrata, which has accumulated a large amount of collapsed soil and is rich in humus, and Abemaki, sawtooth oak, and other trees.
It is believed that once a forest has been maintained by human intervention, it will basically return to the potential natural vegetation of the area if it is not cared for afterwards.
However, human-created forests often do not return to good forests if they are simply left alone.
In this regard, since erosion control forests lack a rich diversity of vegetation and become overgrown with grasses, it is desirable to plant forests that include both tall trees and shrubs.
Tree planting is a profession that contributes to the conservation of land and water resources. Many trees are planted in many countries, reducing soil erosion and raising groundwater levels. It also absorbs carbon dioxide (CO2), one of the greenhouse gases responsible for global warming.
In fact, tree planting is considered one of the most effective ways to combat climate change because it absorbs CO2 from the atmosphere and at the same time protects against floods and droughts that can destroy crops and cause famine.
Plants associated with Komono, Komono has a long history as a place where people used to come from all over to search for medicinal herbs as a main herb study.
Komonogiku Flowering July September Native to Komono
Inamori-so May June
Japanese silver cherry April May
Choujigiku August September
Fuchu-ohsou August September
Paph. suzukazami Sept. Nov.
Kinkoka July-August
In 1980, the National Tree Planting Festival was held in the Mie Prefectural Forest in the presence of the Emperor and Empress Showa. Among the plants on display were akayashio, benidodan, shiroyashio, sarasa dodan, rhododendron, kometsutsuji, inamorisou, iwazakura, kinkojika, and komonogiku.
This time we planted autumn leaves and cherry trees, but we would like to consider planting various combinations of trees to maintain diversity.
