This book is your perfect guide to the fascinating tree diversity of Bengaluru Premium

“It is so exciting to be camping on top of a tree and, at the same time, have all the comfort of staying at home,” he says, pointing to the picture, which depicts the actual hotel, a structure built on an ancient fig-tree which allows guests to have a bird’s-eye view of local wildlife. “Trees are celebrated in poetry, song, painting, and many other ways. This is the way Jim Corbett celebrated trees,” said Rao, at a recent illustrated talk held at the Indian Institute of Science (IISc), Bengaluru, part of Paraspar, an initiative of the Institute’s Office of Communications. “I would want to celebrate trees in my own way.” 

Dr. K. Sankara Rao shares a picture from the hunter-turned-naturalist and writer Jim Corbett’s final book, Tree Tops, a slim tome detailing the visit of the then-Princess Elizabeth to the Treetops hotel in Aberdare National Park in Kenya in 1952, a little before she learnt of the death of her father George VI and her own ascent to the throne of England.

“It is so exciting to be camping on top of a tree and, at the same time, have all the comfort of staying at home,” he says, pointing to the picture, which depicts the actual hotel, a structure built on an ancient fig-tree which allows guests to have a bird’s-eye view of local wildlife. “Trees are celebrated in poetry, song, painting, and many other ways. This is the way Jim Corbett celebrated trees,” said Rao, at a recent illustrated talk held at the Indian Institute of Science (IISc), Bengaluru, part of Paraspar, an initiative of the Institute’s Office of Communications. “I would want to celebrate trees in my own way.” 

Rao, a distinguished fellow at IISc’s Centre for Ecological Sciences (CES), the author of many books and the lead researcher and mentor for several online plant databases, the most recent being India Flora Online, has spent his life celebrating trees. His latest book, titled Trees of Bangalore, is a two-volume, 1000-page labour of love, encapsulating the work of over three decades. The book, published by the Indian Academy of Sciences, was released recently by Prof. A.K. Sood, the Principal Scientific Adviser to the Government of India, at the 90th Annual Meeting of the Academy held in Bhubaneswar. 

The book is a perfect guide to “the fascinating tree diversity in the beautiful city of Bangalore,” says Rao, who thinks that it will significantly benefit anyone passionate about trees, sustainability and urban ecology. “The idea is to take people very close to this boon that Bangalore has got,” he says.

According to him, while there is a wealth of greenery in many other cities and towns in the country, Bengaluru undeniably stands out. “No wonder it is called the garden city of India,” he says, marvelling that the city continues to remain green and verdant despite all the recent development and urbanisation. “That this has happened is a tribute to the nature-loving citizens of this city,” says Rao, quoting Jonas Brunschwig, the Consul General of Switzerland, who once remarked, “The balance of nature and innovation is a rare and cherished aspect of Bangalore.” 

Rao spent his childhood in the East Godavari District of Andhra Pradesh, clambering up many a tree, often “jumping from one branch to another, as many of their primates do,” he admits with a chuckle at the talk.

Of course, his obsession with trees came with its own share of adventures and misadventures. For instance, he recalls trying to jump from the branch of a guava tree onto another belonging to a country badam. “I jumped and caught hold of it, but the very next moment, it gave way,” says Rao, who fell into a mud-filled ditch, still clutching the branch and eventually emerged streaked with mud and emanating a foul smell. “My problem was not the injuries I sustained but about going home and facing my parents,” he admits. “That was when I realised that I should know something about these trees before I do anything with them.”