The UAE has a long tradition of planting trees. In that spirit, His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum launched an initiative to plant one million trees in the UAE before the World Expo 2020 in Dubai.

Land Life Company partnered with ICBA, a world renowned institute for saline agriculture, to assess opportunities for planting trees in the UAE without the need for irrigation.

In February of this year, we planted three indigenous trees: the Ghaf tree, Neem tree, and the Sintra tree. Initially, the shock of transitioning from the greenhouse to such harsh weather conditions caused around 20% of the trees to lose all their leaves within three weeks. Despite the harsh weather conditions, the microclimate within the Cocoon sustains root establishment and enables trees to continue growing. Survival rates today are well above 90%.

We will be monitoring the growth throughout the summer and initiating full-scale plantings after evaluation in October. One million trees, here we come! 

   Emirati education

• Tours of the Cocoon planting site featured at the Global Forum for Innovations in Agriculture (GFIA) Expo 2016 in Abu Dhabi
• The 2020 Expo in Dubai will bring together more than 180 nations and an international audience of 25 million visitors
• ICBA conducts research and development programs that aim to improve agricultural productivity and sustainability in marginal environments