Trees are gifts from nature to mankind but due to shortage of land human beings are clearing forest lands and trees to free up space for real estate.
Amidst this crisis, a man has developed a tree which can bear forty different kinds of fruits.
New York based artist Sam Van Aken developed a wonderful plant, which grows 40 types of fruits. This unique plant is famous as ‘Tree of 40’. It carries many fruits like plum, salu, apricot, cherry and nectarine.
Sam Van Aken, professor of visual arts at Syracuse University in the US, is the father of this unique tree. He began this work in 2008, when he saw a garden in the New York State Agricultural Experiment, which contained 200 kinds of plum and apricot plants.
That garden was going to be closed due to lack of funds, which also had many ancient and inaccessible plant species. Since Van Aken was born into a family related to farming, he was also very interested in farming. He took the garden on lease and with the help of grafting techniques he succeeded in growing the amazing ‘Tree of 40’.
To prepare the plant under the grafting technique, in the winter, a branch of the tree along with a bud is cut and separated. After this, the branch is planted by piercing the main tree. After this, a bandage is tied by applying a paste of nutrients following which the twig gradually attaches to the main tree and fruits and flowers start blooming.
Van Aken’s trees can be found in Arkansas, Kentucky, Maine, Massachusetts, New Jersey, New York and Pennsylvania.