Thimmakka's deep love for nature translated into planting saplings after her marriage at a very tender age of 12.
Published Nov 14, 2025 | 2:55 PM ⚊ Updated Nov 14, 2025 | 2:55 PM
Saalumarada Thimmakka
Synopsis: Saalumarada Thimmakka, Karnataka’s tree woman, breathed her last at the age of 114. She leaves behind over 8,000 trees that she planted, which serve as living testaments to a lifetime of devotion and nurturing.
“We must care for trees, like how we care for children,” India’s “tree woman” Saalumarada Thimmakka once said in a media interview. Thimmakka, born in Karnataka, breathed her last on Friday, 14 November, at the age of 114. She leaves behind over 8,000 trees that she planted, which serve as living testaments to a lifetime of devotion and nurturing.
Born in a small village in Karnataka, Thimmakka did not have access to formal education and spent her time helping her family with farming. Her deep love for nature translated into planting saplings after her marriage at a very tender age of 12. She and her husband, Chikkaya, did not have children.
However, Thimmakka later went on to adopt Umesh after Chikkaya passed away.
In an interview with Al Jazeera, she had said, “One day we thought, why not plant trees and tend to them like we would our children.” They went on a sapling planting spree and then treated these saplings as their children.
What began as a simple thought became a lifelong mission. She planted 385 banyans on State Highway 94 from Kudur to Hulikal. Walking with pots of water to nourish them every day, Thimmakka went on to plant more than 8,000 trees of many different types on a five-km stretch from Kudur to Hulikal.
The name “Saalumara” (meaning row of trees in Kannada) was eventually prefixed to her name by locals in the area.
After her husband died in 1991, Thimmakka carried on her environmental work on her own. For years, she had planted and nurtured trees quietly, far from public gaze. It was only after the Kannada daily Prajavani published a story on her in the 1990s that her efforts came into the public spotlight, drawing attention from across the state and eventually the country.
The then-prime minister, HD Devegowda, heard her story and conferred her with the National Citizens Award. She was also awarded the Padma Shri in 2019, among other awards, including the Nadoja Award by Hampi University in 2010 and the Indira Priyadarshini Vrikshamitra Award in 1997. She was also named among 100 influential and inspirational women in 2016 by the BBC.
Her influence extended beyond the borders. A US-based organisation has been named after her — Thimmakka’s Resources for Environmental Education. In fact, her story was also brought to the United Kingdom by a West Yorkshire dance company that staged a performance based on her life during the Huddersfield Literature Festival in 2024.
Thimmakka also became the face of several environmental agitations. In 2019, under the then-chief minister, HD Kumaraswamy, a proposal was mooted to cut trees on the Bagepalli-Halaguru road in the Mandya district as part of a highway-widening project. The stretch also included the area where she had planted trees with her husband. She met Kumaraswamy and the then-deputy chief minister, G Parameshwara, asking for the project to be called off.
“I will not allow the trees I have planted to be chopped. I will not allow the government to carry out this project,” the veteran environmentalist told reporters after meeting them. The government eventually called up officials concerned, urging them not to carry on with the project and instead find another alignment for the same to minimise tree felling.
Despite being 108, Thimmakka met students at St Joseph’s College in 2019. Along with sharing her story, she encouraged the young students to continue to increase green cover in the country.
Remembering her devotion to environmental conservation, several political leaders condoled Thimmakka’s death on Friday. Chief Minister Siddaramaiah said that the state had become poorer with her loss.
He said in a post on X, ” She devoted most of her life to environmental conservation, planting thousands of trees and nurturing them like her own children. Though she is no longer with us, her love for the environment has made her legacy eternal. My respects to the great soul who has departed. The state has become poorer with the loss of Saalumarada Thimmakka. I pray that her soul rests in peace. My condolences to her family.”
ವೃಕ್ಷಮಾತೆ ಸಾಲುಮರದ ತಿಮ್ಮಕ್ಕನವರ ನಿಧನದ ಸುದ್ದಿ ತಿಳಿದು ದುಃಖಿತನಾಗಿದ್ದೇನೆ. ಸಾವಿರಾರು ಗಿಡಗಳನ್ನು ನೆಟ್ಟು, ಅವುಗಳನ್ನು ಮಕ್ಕಳಂತೆ ಸಲಹಿದ ತಿಮ್ಮಕ್ಕನವರು ತಮ್ಮ ಬಹುಪಾಲು ಜೀವಿತ ಕಾಲವನ್ನು ಪರಿಸರ ಸಂರಕ್ಷಣೆಗಾಗಿ ಮುಡಿಪಾಗಿಟ್ಟವರು.
ಇಂದು ತಿಮ್ಮಕ್ಕನವರು ನಮ್ಮನ್ನು ಅಗಲಿದರೂ ಅವರ ಪರಿಸರ ಪ್ರೇಮ ಅವರನ್ನು ಚಿರಸ್ಥಾಯಿಯಾಗಿಸಿದೆ.… pic.twitter.com/4xYdXQyZUa
— Siddaramaiah (@siddaramaiah) November 14, 2025
Large and Medium Scale Industries Minister MB Patil said Thimmakka had revived the bond between humanity and nature and was the living embodiment of environmental love. “The trees she planted, the shade they provide, the green breath of life they create—all stand as eternal memorials to her extraordinary service. Her contribution to the conservation of trees will serve as a guiding light for future generations as well,” he said in a post on X.
ವೃಕ್ಷಮಾತೆ, ಶತಾಯುಷಿ, ಪದ್ಮಶ್ರೀ, ಸಾಲುಮರದ ತಿಮ್ಮಕ್ಕ ಅವರ ಅಗಲಿಕೆಯ ಸುದ್ದಿ ತಿಳಿದು ದುಃಖಿತನಾಗಿದ್ದೇನೆ.
ಸಾವಿರಾರು ಮರಗಳನ್ನು ನೆಟ್ಟು, ನಿಸರ್ಗದೊಂದಿಗೆ ಮಾನವನ ಬಾಂಧವ್ಯವನ್ನು ಮರುಜೀವಗೊಳಿಸಿದ ತಿಮ್ಮಕ್ಕವರು ಪರಿಸರ ಪ್ರೇಮದ ಜೀವಂತ ರೂಪವಾಗಿದ್ದರು.
ಅವರು ನೆಟ್ಟ ಮರಗಳು, ನೀಡಿದ ನೆರಳು, ಸೃಷ್ಟಿಸಿದ ಹಸಿರು ಉಸಿರು-ಎಲ್ಲವೂ ಅವರ… pic.twitter.com/u4ChHi3i04
— M B Patil (@MBPatil) November 14, 2025
Former Chief Minister Basavaraj Bommai said that the environmental service Thimmakka has rendered would keep her alive forever. “With her departure, the state has lost a venerable life and has become impoverished. Thimmakka’s work will always serve as an inspiration,” he said in a post on X.
ವೃಕ್ಷಮಾತೆ ಶತಾಯುಷಿ ಸಾಲು ಮರದ ತಿಮ್ಮಕ್ಕ ಅವರ ನಿಧನದ ಶುದ್ದಿ ಕೇಳಿ ಅತ್ಯಂತ ಆಘಾತವಾಗಿದೆ. ಸಾವಿರಾರು ಗಿಡಗಳನ್ನು ನೆಟ್ಟು ಮಕ್ಕಳಂತೆ ಸಲುಹಿ ತನ್ನ ಇಡೀ ಜೀವನವನ್ನೇ ಪರಿಸರದ ಉಳುವಿಗಾಗಿ ಮುಡುಪಾಗಿಟ್ಟು ಅವರು ಮಾಡಿರುವ ಪರಿಸರ ಸೇವೆ ಸದಾಕಾಲ ಅವರನ್ನು ಜೀವಂತವಾಗಿಡುತ್ತದೆ. ಅವರ ಸಾಧನೆಗೆ ಪದ್ಮಶ್ರೀ, ರಾಜ್ಯೋತ್ಸವ ಸೇರಿದಂತೆ ಹಲವಾರು… pic.twitter.com/VZ5NCtUDFN
— Basavaraj S Bommai (@BSBommai) November 14, 2025
(Edited by Muhammed Fazil.)
