Stone Craft Group develops the country’s largest man-made forest at Kavvaguda near Shamshabad
Posted on – 11:45 PM, Fri – 12 December 22
Hyderabad: Live in the arms of nature, surrounded by lush greenery, wake up to the sound of birds chirping, and walk in the breeze.
Who doesn’t dream and long for such a life? Today, the concept of eco-friendly living is catching up, with many looking to build their dream nest in a quiet and green sprawl surrounded by nature.
How about living in what happens to be the largest man-made forest in the country at Kavvaguda, near Shamshabad? The 18-acre forest in Kavvaguda, developed by Stone Craft Group led by Kirthi Chilukuri and Anusha Podduturi, is part of their 62-acre real estate venture called Woods.
The forest was developed using the Miyawaki method – pioneered by Japanese botanist Akira Miyawaki, which helps create dense, fast-growing forests with native plants.
With more than 400,000 trees, the forest attracts an eclectic variety of bird, butterfly and dragonfly species and takes three years to grow. The idea is to bring people back to the days of being close to nature, connecting, interacting and co-existing with nature, Kirthi Chilukuri explained, adding that more than 100 species of birds are found in the area.
“From 2019, we didn’t know how to develop this land. As COVID-19 swept the world, we realized the impact of lack of oxygen on humans, which inspired the concept of developing a self-sufficient forest,” he said.
The Stone Craft team, assisted by the project’s lead architect and landscape architect, Ravi Kumar Kumbham, worked hard to understand the ecology of the land – identifying native trees and preparing the soil in the correct way.
“The Miyawaki method requires native trees and suitable soil so that the trees grow faster. We identified 140 native trees within a 50km radius and visited various forest nurseries across India to source saplings. We just kept planting , and before we knew it, we covered 18 acres,” he added.
Kirthi Chilukuri explains that to prepare the soil, they first mix the ground with sand, red earth and cocoa peat, a special combination that helps retain moisture. Natural fertilizers from dairy farms are added to the soil.
76 eco-friendly homes are being built on the remaining land, which must be accessed by crossing a bridge across the forest. The perimeter of the property has been dug 10 feet for forest and has a retaining wall to keep reptiles out of the property.
The forest now hosts 128 species of native fruit and flowering trees, including Gulmohar, custard, Indian pig’s plum, Javan olive, Javan plum, neem, Indian soapberry and tamarind. The Stone Craft team even managed to tag every tree in the forest with a GI.
