Growing a School Woodland

Every woodland begins somewhere and at Lemong’o Primary School, it began with a single Acacia tree.

For years, that lone tree was the only place where students could gather for shade during lunch. In a dry landscape where heat can be unforgiving and tree cover is limited, its value was immediate. It offered shelter, a meeting place and, perhaps without anyone realizing it at the time, a glimpse of what the school grounds could one day become.

That one tree eventually became the starting point of a much larger journey.

Over the years, Lemong’o Primary School has planted approximately 1,500 seedlings across its compound. The work has not been easy. Severe droughts have tested young trees, while wandering livestock and wildlife have damaged others before they had a chance to establish.

Despite these challenges, around 850 trees have survived.
They now stand across the school grounds, transforming what was once a largely bare compound into a greener and more shaded environment.

Among them, Senna siamea has emerged as one of the most successful species. Its leaves are rarely browsed by animals, making it particularly well suited to a school that shares its landscape with both livestock and wildlife.

For our school greening projects to work we have learnt that we must understand which species can survive, comprehend the pressures of the surrounding environment and adapt accordingly.
At Lemong’o, the trees themselves have become teachers.

The school’s growing woodland is now cared for by an active Environment and Wildlife Club of 85 students. These young environmental stewards water trees, observe their progress, learn about different species and take responsibility for ensuring that what has been planted continues to grow.

Their involvement is important because conservation becomes more meaningful when students are trusted to practice it not merely told about environmental stewardship.

Through ongoing environmental education and practical guidance from Conservation Kenya, the students began to see another opportunity.

They realized that they could care for trees and to raise them too.
Recognizing the students’ enthusiasm and the school’s potential to become more self-sufficient in seedling production, Dr Winnie Kiiru connected Lemong’o Primary School with the Chandaria Foundation.

The result was the donation of a complete greenhouse tree nursery.

With the capacity to hold up to 10,000 seedlings, the nursery has turned an ambitious idea into something operational, giving students the opportunity to understand the full journey of a tree long before it reaches the ground.
They see how seeds are propagated, learn how seedlings are cared for and understand why some plants thrive while others struggle.

Over time, they will help produce the trees that will continue greening their own school and potentially support restoration beyond its boundaries.

This has changed the nature of conservation education making the schools, living classroom.
Lemong’o began with one tree and a need for shade.

The progress that followed came incrementally ensuring hundreds of trees stand where once there was almost none. The school now has the capacity to raise thousands of its own maintaining its self-sufficiency.

When students are equipped with knowledge to care for their environment and schools learn from failure as well as success, this is what we call success.

Young people begin to see that they have the ability to change the landscapes immediately around them converting them to life long stewards.

Lemong’o’s story is still being written but the view from the school grounds is already remarkably different.
Where students once gathered beneath a single Acacia tree, they are now helping to grow a school woodland of their own. We don’t always have to have thousands of trees to begin a green future. Often you only need just one. That is what Lemongo has taught us.