I planted several gliricidia trees today and all it really involves is sticking a big piece of an older branch into the ground and that’s it! My friends Adam and Katie taught me this. They have a bunch of gliricidia growing as a hedge along their gardens.
Gliricidia is a medium sized tree that’s fast growing. In South America they call it Madre de Cacao (Mother of Cacao) because it’s commonly used as a shade tree in cacao plantations.
Trees like grilicidia provide multiple functions in our fledgling forest. 1) They are a good wind protection for sensitive trees like cacao. 2) They create a nice dapple shade giving protection to shade loving plants and hinder the weeds from growing. 3) They are a deep rooting nitrogen fixing tree that improves soil health. 4) Since they grow so fast you can keep chopping them back providing organic material for compost piles or for mulching. 5) Bees love the flowers.
By strategically planting beneficial trees you can create an ideal situation for the trees you really want to grow while improving the soil and speeding up natural succession.
Originally posted on 2021-01-10, part of the daily planting journal behind Ha’a Chocolate’s food forest on Hawai’i Island.