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Mini-Forest Revolution: Using the Miyawaki Method to Rapidly Rewild the World
*2023 Nautilus Book Award Gold Medal Green, Restorative Practices /Sustainability "Hannah Lewis describes a gift to a despairing world. . . . There may be no single climate solution that has a greater breadth of benefits than mini-forests. . . [and] can be done by everyone everywhere."―Paul Hawken, from the foreword For readers who enjoyed Finding the Mother Tree and The Hidden Life of Tree s comes the first-ever book about a movement to restore biodiversity in our cities and towns by transforming empty lots, backyards, and degraded land into mini-forests. Author Hannah Lewis is the forest maker turning asphalt into ecosystems to save the planet and she wants everyone to know they can do it too. In Mini-Forest Revolution , Lewis presents the Miyawaki Method, a unique approach to reforestation devised by Japanese botanist Akira Miyawaki. She explains how tiny forests as small as six parking spaces grow quickly and are much more biodiverse than those planted by conventional methods. She explores the science behind why Miyawaki-style mini-forests work and the myriad environmental benefits, cooling urban heat islands, establishing wildlife corridors, building soil health, sequestering carbon, creating pollinator habitats, and more. Today, the Miyawaki Method is witnessing a worldwide surge in popularity. Lewis shares the stories of mini-forests that have sprung up across the globe and the people who are planting them―from a young forest along the concrete alley of the Beirut River in Lebanon, to a backyard forest planted by tiny-forest champion Shubhendu Sharma in India. This inspiring book offers a revolutionary approach to planting trees and a truly accessible solution to the climate crisis that can be implemented by communities, classrooms, cities, clubs, and families everywhere. "Lewis simplifies the science of planting trees in a manner that produces the maximum benefit."― The Associated Press
224 pages, Paperback
First published June 1, 2022
53 people are currently reading
427 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 26 of 26 reviews
July 15, 2022
As a book, this is only ok. It relies heavily on publicly available training guides and quick interviews with a few key players in the author’s personal network, frequently wanders into philosophical side tangents, and struggles to logically and cohesively present the evidence backing up the environmental contributions of mini-forests.
But I didn’t pick this up to be wowed by great narrative. I picked it up to add a tool to my toolkit of being able to do something in the face of climate change, and in that, this book succeeds. The purpose of The Mini Forest Revolution is to further spread the concept that mini forests can be planted anywhere and everywhere, that it’s a task which can be undertaken by ordinary persons (you – yes, YOU), and that they offer rapid benefit to building your local climate resiliency.
The Miyawaki Method differs from simple tree planting by targeting to build a functional climax forest ecosystem in a drastically shortened time frame – fifteen to forty years, rather than the typical 100+ years it takes. Most of the current tree planting craze focuses on individual trees (which have a massive die off rate!), but it’s the complex, biodiverse communities of fully mature forests that contribute the greatest ecological and carbon removal benefits. Miyawaki’s method requires work (unlike most tree plantings, extensive time is put into soil preparation, and it absolutely requires maintenance for the first two to three years), but it is work within the skill set of anyone with determination, and it lets us plants forests in extremely small areas. Think the medians between highways, abandoned lots, small patches of land – all of these can turn into forests while reducing the urban heat effect and air pollution, drawing down carbon, and improving the water table.
One line of the book particularly stood out to me, when the author is discussing her work getting a mini forest planted in her own community in France:
If you are interested in supporting mini forests but don’t want to go plant one yourself, check out SUJi, which provides financing for mini forest projects around the world (and funded many of the forests the author features in her book). And if you can't get a copy of the book, watch the TED talked that inspired much of the current work.
But I didn’t pick this up to be wowed by great narrative. I picked it up to add a tool to my toolkit of being able to do something in the face of climate change, and in that, this book succeeds. The purpose of The Mini Forest Revolution is to further spread the concept that mini forests can be planted anywhere and everywhere, that it’s a task which can be undertaken by ordinary persons (you – yes, YOU), and that they offer rapid benefit to building your local climate resiliency.
The Miyawaki Method differs from simple tree planting by targeting to build a functional climax forest ecosystem in a drastically shortened time frame – fifteen to forty years, rather than the typical 100+ years it takes. Most of the current tree planting craze focuses on individual trees (which have a massive die off rate!), but it’s the complex, biodiverse communities of fully mature forests that contribute the greatest ecological and carbon removal benefits. Miyawaki’s method requires work (unlike most tree plantings, extensive time is put into soil preparation, and it absolutely requires maintenance for the first two to three years), but it is work within the skill set of anyone with determination, and it lets us plants forests in extremely small areas. Think the medians between highways, abandoned lots, small patches of land – all of these can turn into forests while reducing the urban heat effect and air pollution, drawing down carbon, and improving the water table.
One line of the book particularly stood out to me, when the author is discussing her work getting a mini forest planted in her own community in France:
It was the discussion of a solution that led to contemplation of the problem – a discussion that empowers and equips rather than paralyzes.You must bring others into the work. The mini forests are amazing ideas and incredibly actionable, but not by oneself. You don’t need to be a botanist or an ecologist, but you must go out and talk to your neighbors, and to your town. These conversations, connections, and collaborations will give you a forest. They will also give you people suddenly coming together to find ways to fix many other things.
If you are interested in supporting mini forests but don’t want to go plant one yourself, check out SUJi, which provides financing for mini forest projects around the world (and funded many of the forests the author features in her book). And if you can't get a copy of the book, watch the TED talked that inspired much of the current work.
October 3, 2022
Another book on my journey of becoming completely absorbed in trees. Circumspect and interesting, skewers the right-wing tree-monoculture "solution" while actually offering a real solution rooted in systems, ecology, biodiversity. Emphasizes the social value of initiating and sustaining a Miyawaki planting. THIS IS REPLICABLE! THIS CAN BE DONE! Excellent. On a literary note, if I could change anything I'd question the order of the chapters, they are a little strange so I'd like more understanding for why they're sequenced that way. Otherwise, great. I've already signed up as a count me in volunteer with a local Miyawaki planter and I'm headed to a planting event this weekend. If you need a kick in the pants (or whatever phrase actually motivates instead of shames you) give it a read!
October 20, 2022
This is a compelling and instructive look at how to create mature, multi-layered, native forests in minimal space (as little as 4-6 parking spaces) over an accelerated time frame (20-30 years as opposed to 200-300 years). Having just planted a mini-forest in 11,000 sq ft of grassy meadow in my hometown, this book held particular interest to me and my team. Read it, be inspired and join us in planting micro-forests!
February 19, 2023
Don't let the hyperbolic title put you off. (Publishers get carried away sometimes.) This is a sober and practical little volume. Botanist Akira Miyawaki had the great insight that it is possible to establish a small forest, with a full and rich ecosystem, in a matter of years rather than decades. And he showed many gimes over that planting such forests can and should be done by a groups of ordinary people. Hannah Lewis describes many successful implementations of the Miyawaki method around the world, in a variety of climates and conditions. She concludes with a brief overview of the different steps in establishing a mini-forest. Lewis precisely threads this needle, giving enough detail to be informative without turning the audience away by being exhaustive. For those (like me) intrigued enough to want to try to install a Miyawaki mini-forest, Lewis points to more in-depth sources.
January 20, 2024
I was impressed with the Miyawaki forest descriptions. I finally am beginning to understand the logic of the densely packed small site, multi-species “mini-forest.” It has taken me a while to be comfortable calling plantings this small forests. I am concerned we need to focus on “real” interconnected “natural” forests.
That said, it seems like a well thought out strategy to maximize biodiversity in a very small space and create mini-biohabitats.
The author made a long term commitment and successfully championed a mini-forest. I would be interested in funding mini-forest developments in Richmond
It makes sense that some plantings are closer together. It feels like there has been a suggestion to plant trees far enough apart so their canopies don’t overlap. It makes much more sense to consider denser bio diverse planting.
Great info. Enjoyed the book. Not the best written ever and not read by the author.
That said, it seems like a well thought out strategy to maximize biodiversity in a very small space and create mini-biohabitats.
The author made a long term commitment and successfully championed a mini-forest. I would be interested in funding mini-forest developments in Richmond
It makes sense that some plantings are closer together. It feels like there has been a suggestion to plant trees far enough apart so their canopies don’t overlap. It makes much more sense to consider denser bio diverse planting.
Great info. Enjoyed the book. Not the best written ever and not read by the author.
March 12, 2023
A Must Read for anyone who is not a biologist, or arborist, by training, but who wants to undertake a practical, neighbourhood planting to mitigate climate change and build their community. I’m all in.
June 14, 2025
Quick read about an interesting topic, though still a bit inflated. The author describes a method developed by Japanese botanist Akira Miyawaki for rapidly re-establishing stands of native trees in areas where native forests have been extirpated. We are so often told by climate "realists" that very little can been done on an individual level and that real change can only come for governments and increase regulation on corporate pollution. Even if little can be done on an individual level (an argument that I think the author of this book would take issue with) it can be nice to do something to help assuage climate-related guilt, and helping to plant as many trees as you can seems like the best, most effective, non-effective thing to do. Whether or not Miyawaki mini-forests are the solution to global warming, stands of native plants counteract urban heat traps, attract interesting native insects and birds, and will always look better than whatever ailanthus, paulownia, or white mulberry would otherwise be their place. Lewis describes the interdependent weave of species in a native forest, where no matter how important or attractive any one particular species is, it is only one thread in a textile of relationships.
Most of this book's most interesting ideas are drawn from other texts, and in that way, it sometimes reads like a book report. The first few chapters do a lot of lionizing of nonprofits and even corporations for their adoption and promulgation of the Miyawaki method. It's not hard to see why such entities would be interested in it - it promises a quick, efficient solution to a difficult problem. Unfortunately, the same characteristics that make the method practical and realistic in an anthropomorphized environment also make it perfect for a corporation in need of greenwashing. I felt Lewis took these actors a little too much at face value, but I'm also biased against anybody who has ever given a TED talk. I liked when Lewis got into the weeds (pun intended) on the challenge of selecting native species to design a Miyawaki forest. Defining what could be considered possible native vegetation in any highly disturbed area is no small feat, and I appreciated that Lewis described the process she used to design her miniforest and included her species list as well as how she sourced them.
All in all, this book is more directed at nonprofit, NGO, government types than those interested in the ecology of native forests.
Most of this book's most interesting ideas are drawn from other texts, and in that way, it sometimes reads like a book report. The first few chapters do a lot of lionizing of nonprofits and even corporations for their adoption and promulgation of the Miyawaki method. It's not hard to see why such entities would be interested in it - it promises a quick, efficient solution to a difficult problem. Unfortunately, the same characteristics that make the method practical and realistic in an anthropomorphized environment also make it perfect for a corporation in need of greenwashing. I felt Lewis took these actors a little too much at face value, but I'm also biased against anybody who has ever given a TED talk. I liked when Lewis got into the weeds (pun intended) on the challenge of selecting native species to design a Miyawaki forest. Defining what could be considered possible native vegetation in any highly disturbed area is no small feat, and I appreciated that Lewis described the process she used to design her miniforest and included her species list as well as how she sourced them.
All in all, this book is more directed at nonprofit, NGO, government types than those interested in the ecology of native forests.
April 26, 2025
A succinct quick dive and introduction into the methodology of how to recreate a mature forest through artificial means of intensive planting. It was incredible to note that the late Miyawaki himself had discovered this efficient and easily replicated means of planting fully fledged multi layered forests as early as the 1970s, but that even today we are still not doing it at scale in more places, instead opting for quick growing tree plantation monocultures and passing these off as reforestation. The book provided many examples of community driven initiatives using this method of authentic reforestation, from arid regions in India and the middle east to temperate European countries. Such projects not only bring back the climate ameliorating effects of forests, but also encourages the return of native wildlife as well, rewilding and restoring local ecologies.
In our nature deprived society, we definitely need more inspiring actions to recover the planet from human abuse. At the same time though, the intensive labor and resources needed to reproduce climax vegetation made me wonder if this should be channeled into growing permaculture agro/food forests instead, given the concurrent decentralization of consumption we should also be embracing going forward.
In our nature deprived society, we definitely need more inspiring actions to recover the planet from human abuse. At the same time though, the intensive labor and resources needed to reproduce climax vegetation made me wonder if this should be channeled into growing permaculture agro/food forests instead, given the concurrent decentralization of consumption we should also be embracing going forward.
November 21, 2025
This book raised many case studies looking at the successes and stories of reforestation and afforestation efforts across the world, all of which are tied to one man: Akira Miyawaki. Being the pioneer of the Miyawaki method of planting trees, he has led and inspired many to restore our forests.
I appreciated how the author showcases how tree planting efforts happened in different contexts along with all the struggles that came along with it. Beyond that, she showed the effects of such planting efforts from alleviating drought in Cameroon to helping schoolchildren grow up with forests in the Netherlands.
I would recommend this book to those who want to start their own reforesting projects. Hannah gives readers a step by step guide to begin their own mini-forest projects in their communities after being inspired by the many success stories contained in this book.
3/5 as admittedly, the storytelling could have been better and I had hoped that more data would be shown to quantify how successful such plantings were in reality. I also question the author’s decision to place the chapter on ecological and forest succession concepts at the back of the book, rather than the front.
I appreciated how the author showcases how tree planting efforts happened in different contexts along with all the struggles that came along with it. Beyond that, she showed the effects of such planting efforts from alleviating drought in Cameroon to helping schoolchildren grow up with forests in the Netherlands.
I would recommend this book to those who want to start their own reforesting projects. Hannah gives readers a step by step guide to begin their own mini-forest projects in their communities after being inspired by the many success stories contained in this book.
3/5 as admittedly, the storytelling could have been better and I had hoped that more data would be shown to quantify how successful such plantings were in reality. I also question the author’s decision to place the chapter on ecological and forest succession concepts at the back of the book, rather than the front.
February 17, 2025
This book offers fantastic and interesting insights in what the Miyawaki Method is (mini-forest), the societal and natural benefits of installing a biodiverse forest, and how to make a Miyawaki forest a reality in your life. The fact that a relatively small but dense forest can have an outsized impact in sequestering carbon, cleaning the air and water, and giving refuge to wildlife as well as establishing a community's connection to nature, is nothing short of miraculous.
This book lays the groundwork to where we can enact on climate optimism, where hoping turns into doing. In short, I'd consider this to be a non-fiction solarpunk book, in which a green future is formed in the present.
This book lays the groundwork to where we can enact on climate optimism, where hoping turns into doing. In short, I'd consider this to be a non-fiction solarpunk book, in which a green future is formed in the present.
October 29, 2024
This is an extraordinary book for anyone who enjoys botany, plants, trees, or simply planting and walking through parks to enjoy nature. It offers a great, easy-to-read, straightforward insight into the complexity of planting trees. As a frustrated gardener, with this theory and ChatGPT’s guidance on endemic trees in my area, I can now start planting responsibly and strategically to create mini forests full of biodiversity.
January 20, 2023
Something almost anybody can do
This book was well written and easy to read yet informative. Anyone who can get past the theory that trees cannot touch each other in the front yard can adapt this idea. A 10 foot diameter piece of yard could have three tall trees and numerous undergrowth plants.
This book was well written and easy to read yet informative. Anyone who can get past the theory that trees cannot touch each other in the front yard can adapt this idea. A 10 foot diameter piece of yard could have three tall trees and numerous undergrowth plants.
November 27, 2023
Mais um daqueles que me vendem um livro pelo menos razoavelmente técnico e bem embasado em evidências concretas e me entregam anedotas. O último capítulo é minimamente ok, mas um TED Talk bem feito ou quinze minutos de Google provavelmente me dariam resultados semelhantes em menos de sete horas de audiolivro.
June 9, 2023
This was an interesting read, but I didn't find it really instructive, which is what I was expecting. It's a good idea and I hope that it catches on more in the U.S., but I would need more step by step instructions to feel like I could tackle it.
November 5, 2024
This is a beautifully written book that is very inspiring. Makes me want to plant a mini forest on our property! It sounds like an awful lot of work, though, and like you definitely want some sort of group or organization helping out and/or backing you up!
August 21, 2022
We can each do our part to save the planet. Who knew mini-forests were the answer? Amazing concept, amazing call to action for individuals, neighborhoods, and communities. What if we all did this? So inspiring.
January 19, 2023
Woefully short on actual technique. Mostly a series of anecdotes of projects around the world.
March 10, 2023
I love the idea of mini forests and I am glad this is happening!
Read
March 19, 2023Read first, and two final chapters.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
June 13, 2023
Subject: very interesting
Writing style: not so much
Writing style: not so much
September 4, 2023
The ideas are great. I wish there was more how to and less why to.
February 8, 2024
An inspiring and informative guide to planting micro-forests across the globe.
February 1, 2025
Agree with some of those other posts. As a book this is ok but the concept that drove it is exciting. Would love to see more resources. More mini-forests. More ecologically rich landscapes.
August 9, 2025
genuinely think everyone should read this book, absolutely invigorating and chock full of awesome information
October 12, 2025
The part of the book that I found the most useful and what I was looking for are chapters 7&8(pages 107-150).
March 12, 2024
Deftly written. I now know a lot about the fastest way to plant and grow a small forest. Everyone can learn this. Clearly the longest part, if it's not on your own land, is getting things arranged, permissions,! and coordinated. The book even describes different ways that's been done!
Displaying 1 - 26 of 26 reviews