A patch of ground in Boráros tér has just been planted with saplings according to a method devised by legendary botanist, Akira Miyawaki. The Miyawaki garden comprises 209 new trees across 80 square metres. In his native Japan, Miyawaki created more than 1,300 tiny forests, whose tree species are native to the area. Since then, similar initiatives have been carried out from France to Sri Lanka – this is now the second one in Budapest.
The other special feature of a Miyawaki forest is that the saplings are planted very densely next to each other in a random arrangement. Plants therefore grow faster because competition for light and nutrients is stronger than for a stand-alone ornamental tree.
In 2021, shortly before the botanist’s death at the age of 93, we reported on the first such Miyawaki mini-forest in Buda.