Source: https://www.npr.org/2026/05/20/nx-s1-5734482/urban-forests-miyawaki-climate-solution From the post: >>Wendy Clapp dreamt of turning her backyard in Tacoma into a Pacific Northwest forest. But for 25 years, she was stuck fighting back an aggressive invasive species that filled the yard: Japanese knotweed. Her search to destroy this noxious bamboo-like weed and restore her yard got her thinking. " What if Tacoma had never been developed?" Clapp questioned. She imagined her Victorian home as it might have existed hundreds of years ago, with native plants all around. Clapp turned to a decades-old planting method from Japan to design her forest. The Miyawaki method involves planting native trees and vegetation close together — so densely that 350 trees can fit in an area as small as six parking spaces. The plants compete for nutrients and sunlight, forcing them to grow quickly. Within 20 to 30 years, a fully mature pocket forest emerges.