3 weeks ago
2
It’s a scenic route. From Coimbatore, we thrust to Udhagamandalam and proceed via Gudalur and the Mudumalai wood cheque station to scope Sulthan Bathery in Wayanad, traversing steep hairpin turns and lush greenish landscapes. At the extremity of the seven-hour ride, Suprabha Seshan and her canine friends greet america astatine Gurukula Botanical Sanctuary (GBS)at Periya, which is simply a 26 kilometre drive from Mananthavady in Wayanad. As we instrumentality successful the quiescent of the wood astatine nighttime from the newly constructed glass house, an inky bluish acheronian settles implicit the hills. The adjacent time begins with a brisk locomotion past the dairy farm, earlier stopping by astatine the assemblage room for tea.
I americium at GBS to larn astir the School of Ecological Nurturance (SEN) apprenticeship programme, an inaugural started on with The Forest Way Trust (Tiruvannamalai), Upstream Ecology (Ooty), and Adavi Trust (Mysore). The GBS story begins with the onshore itself. Unlike overmuch of Wayanad, which saw wide clearing of forests during the onshore reforms successful the mid-20th century, this spot survived arsenic a blend of superior and secondary forests adjacent arsenic the surrounding scenery transformed into farms and settlements. Families arriving successful the precocious 1960s and 70s cultivated tapioca, lemongrass, bananas, jackfruit, and mango. Amid this changing terrain, a young seeker, Wolfgang Theuerkauf, a German national, the laminitis of GBS, arrived. “There was nary program to conserve biodiversity. He just didn’t clear the land,” says Suprabha. The sanctuary has dense works collections, untouched forests, streams, and assemblage landscapes nearby.
