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Little Apples

8/31/2016

Those of us who were raised in small towns or rural areas grew up with trees as part of our landscapes. I took them for granted as a child, and only later understood their significance. The 19 years I lived in NYC allowed me the opportunity to visit a long list of parks where I could enjoy the comfort of trees any time I needed them. Every time I visit the city it makes me happy to see that new trees are continually being planted. Now we live in my husband’s family home in a small New Jersey town, and there are many old trees on the property. We moved here about 15 years ago, then adopted our beautiful child, hoping she’d grow up loving the trees as much as we do. She does love them, and can’t even stand the idea of pulling up seedling volunteers.

My daughter’s favorite tree is an 80-year-old Japanese maple she’s been climbing since she was quite small. She’s a very skilled climber. When I was little, I was good at going up, but not so brave about coming down - I once climbed so high on a dare, I was unable to come down. I had climbed ridiculously high, and my babysitter’s coaxing couldn’t calm my fears. She eventually called the fire department to rescue me. The ribbing I received about being a cat didn’t end until we moved away. I’m grateful the experience didn’t stop me from climbing trees or exploring their many wonders.

My family moved frequently throughout the Dakotas, the Midwest, West Virginia, and later to Tennessee and Washington state, and each new town offered new trees for exploration and exploitation. I thought all trees were fair game. There were crab apple trees in nearly every place we lived and I got more than one case of stomach cramps from gorging on them. Chokecherries were another favorite, and I brought them home in buckets so my Mom could make jam. In Knoxville, TN, there were lots of beautiful pear trees adorning lawns when I was 10. The pears were all hard and green with thick, bumpy skins, and even though they were woody and dry, we tried to eat them. They were probably ornamental pears, which are now considered invasive.

We were fortunate enough to live by three different orchards as we moved from one town to the next, and for an entire summer we lived in the house attached to an abandoned apple orchard in La Crescent, MN. I ate so many apples that summer, I couldn’t eat another one for two years. The orchard was home to at least one enormous colony of bats, and we enjoyed scaring ourselves by walking through the apple trees at sundown as the bats flapped around us, in search of food. They were probably as afraid of us as we were of them.

I am old enough to have grown up in a time when children were sent outside to play and make their own entertainment. Trees gave me a large amount of that play time and amusement. I tasted all kinds of nuts, seeds and berries without knowing what I was eating. We stirred up and drank concoctions of twigs, leaves, berries and bark, and I wonder sometimes why were weren’t poisoned. We swung from branches like little monkeys, tied ropes to tree limbs, and some of us broke our own limbs falling from those ropes. Parents like ours would now be considered negligent, but I feel very fortunate to have had those adventures in complete freedom. Trees were an enormous part of my childhood experiences.

Our world has changed immensely since I was a child, and although many of the changes have made life better, some of them have moved all of us further away from the natural world. Even though I have tried to expose my daughter to nature as much as possible, I have still been unable to keep her away from one screen or another. Here I sit in front of a computer screen typing this blog, so I’m not immune…

My daughter argues with me about Pokemon Go, maintaining that it helps people to get outside and explore the outdoors. Because I am an old fogey, I tell her that back in my day, no one needed a computer game or a smart phone to get outdoors, use our imaginations, or find things to amuse us. Because she loves finding Pokemon eggs so much, I have refrained from commenting on them, but I found plenty of real eggs in real nests when I was her age, and discovering them was its own reward.

Summer vacation is almost over for my daughter, and she goes back to school next week. After we’re all settled back into the swing of things, I’ll be launching an Indiegogo campaign to publish my children’s picture book, “I AM THE HUGGER!”. It’s a silly but informative take on trees. As a build-up to the fundraising campaign, I’ve been writing about trees all summer, and I have learned a lot. I hope you readers have enjoyed learning with me. Some of the news about trees is exciting and eye-opening, but too much of the news is distressing. Too many forests are succumbing to disease, fires and industry abuses, but we can all help to change that. I'm hoping that "I AM THE HUGGER!" will help to spread the word that trees need us as much as we need them.

We can all encourage sustainable forestry practices, support reforesting campaigns, and encourage tree planting and protections in our communities. Our children, their children, and their children’s children deserve to live in a world that values trees.

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Mother Trees, Family and Pronouns

8/23/2016

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My mother passed away in the summer of 2011, and I miss her just as much today as I did the day I got the gut wrenching news that she had died in her recliner 2 hours after coming home from the hospital where she had been treated for a stomach ulcer. She had beaten cancer against all odds and was doing very well, so her death from a stomach ulcer was a shock. There was a time when I didn’t think I could survive without my Mom, but I had to pull myself together because I am a mother too. I tell myself I’m lucky to have had her love and advice for more than 50 years, but it doesn’t cure the sadness that comes from being motherless.

The idea of the survival of humanity without mothers is almost inconceivable. Babies need someone to provide them with attention, affection and stimulation. Research shows that without parents, babies fail to develop normally - the wiring of their brain circuitry goes haywire. Children who are adopted and nurtured by the age of two can recover from neglect, but for many, the psychological effects last a lifetime. Mothers are crucial for the survival of most organisms, but all too often, western culture takes mothers for granted.

Forestry science has come to understand the fact that trees have mothers too. When old growth trees in forests are cut down, young, orphaned trees suffer, struggle to survive and often die. When old growth trees are felled, forests lose biodiversity, and perish.

Old growth, “Mother Trees” recognize their kin and protect their offspring through an underground network of fungal mycelium which connects all the plants and trees in forests, exchanging nutrients and information. Native cultures call these old growth trees "Grandmother Trees”, reflecting their longevity and role as wise, old nurturers. Mother trees even change their root structure to make room for baby trees. While Mother Trees do favor their own offspring, they don’t just share their resources with family members - they share them with trees of different species as well. Suzanne Simard, Ph.D - a leading forestry ecologist, and Professor of Forest Ecology in the Department of Forest and Conservation Sciences at the University of British Columbia says “… when fungal networks are intact they allow a greater diversity of trees, each with their own strengths and weaknesses, to survive in the forest.”

The lumber industry’s practice of clear-cutting forests has traditionally exploited and ravaged old growth forests, targeting the oldest and largest trees because they are the most valuable. While industry practices are slowly improving, attempts at sustainable forestry practices are still questionable, and there’s a lot of greenwashing going on in the forestry business. Business practices are slow to change. Old growth forests are still suffering and being depleted just as we are beginning to understand more about their complexities. We're just beginning to understand how they can help us solve many of our environmental problems, and how important global forest recovery programs are in combatting climate change.

Trees are highly evolved, sentient life forms with sophisticated communication networks and a sense of community. Animals (including humans), plants, and fungi share an ancestor that lived about 1.6 billion years ago, and we humans share a surprising amount of DNA with our very distant plant cousins. DNA studies show that our DNA is more similar to plants than different from them - we share about half of our DNA with the banana plant.

Every moment we are nurtured, nourished and blessed by the gifts that Mother Earth showers on us. Western civilization has given little or nothing back to the Earth, and in fact, the English language impudently addresses the Earth as an “it”. According to Robin Wall Kimmerer, author and Professor of Environmental and Forest Biology at the State University of New York College of Environmental Science and Forestry, “Using ‘it” absolves us of moral responsibility and opens the door to exploitation… “It” means it doesn’t matter.” Professor Kimmerer is a member of the Citizen Potawatomi Nation and she combines traditional indigenous knowledge with science in her teaching and writing. She has been learning the Anishinaabe language.

According to Kimmerer, ”…The language (English) allows no form of respect for the more-than-human beings with whom we share the planet. “But in Anishinaabe and many other indigenous languages, it’s impossible to speak of Sugar Maple as “it.” We use the same words to address all living beings as we do our family. Because they are our family… The proper Anishinaabe word for beings of the living Earth would be Bemaadiziiaaki. I wanted to run through the woods calling it out, so grateful that this word exists. But I also recognized that this beautiful word would not easily find its way to take the place of “it.” We need a simple new English word to carry the meaning offered by the indigenous one. Inspired by the grammar of animacy and with full recognition of its Anishinaabe roots, might we hear the new pronoun at the end of Bemaadiziiaaki, nestled in the part of the word that means land?

“Ki” to signify a being of the living Earth. Not “he” or “she,” but “ki.” So that when we speak of Sugar Maple, we say, “Oh that beautiful tree, ki is giving us sap again this spring.” And we’ll need a plural pronoun, too, for those Earth beings. Let’s make that new pronoun “kin.” So we can now refer to birds and trees not as things, but as our earthly relatives. On a crisp October morning we can look up at the geese and say, “Look, kin are flying south for the winter. Come back soon.

Language can be a tool for cultural transformation. Make no mistake: “Ki” and “kin” are revolutionary pronouns. Words have power to shape our thoughts and our actions. On behalf of the living world, let us learn the grammar of animacy. We can keep “it” to speak of bulldozers and paperclips, but every time we say “ki,” let our words reaffirm our respect and kinship with the more-than-human world. Let us speak of the beings of Earth as the “kin” they are.”

What a change in attitudes Kimmerer’s small word adjustment would bring about. In a world where too many influential people refuse to acknowledge the fact that we’re destroying the planet, it might take a while before this kind of language shift can occur. It’s a beautiful, transformative idea. When we begin to think of all of life as family - kin - we will learn to respect our Mother Trees and our Mother, Earth.

To learn more about forest networks and Mother Trees, here are links to three Suzanne Simard videos:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dRSPy3ZwpBk
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pLU9EPo1iwQ
http://fantasticfungi.com/mother-trees/

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Oak Wilt Threatens NJ State Tree

8/15/2016

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Here in the United States, the oak is possibly the most well known tree of all. Oak trees are found in the Americas, Asia, Europe and North Africa, and there are nearly 200 species worldwide. The oak is the national tree of several countries because it symbolizes so many of the qualities we humans value: success, stability, fertility, endurance, power, strength, wisdom and health. The mighty oak was sacred throughout the major cultures of Europe. It was venerated by the Greeks, Romans, Celts, Slavs and Teutonic tribes. Because oaks trees seem to be more prone to lightning strikes than other trees, the oak was long ago associated with powerful thunder gods, including Zeus, Jupiter, Dagda, Perun and Thor. In the Bible, oak trees figure in the books of Genesis, Isaiah, Samuel, Judges, Daniel, Ezekiel and Joshua. For some Native American cultures, the oak is used as a clan symbol and is associated with strength of character and courage.

The Lenape Indians of the Oley Valley of Pennsylvania have a legend about a 500 year old Chinkapin oak that stands at 84 feet tall with a circumference of about 20 feet. According to the legend, there was once a powerful Lenape chief whose wife became terribly ill. None of the tribe’s healers or medicine men could cure her, and her illness worsened. The desperate chief journeyed to a Sacred Oak where he prayed to the Great Spirit, asking that his wife be saved. When the chief returned to camp his wife was healed. Many years later, the chief became concerned that an enemy tribe would attack - so again, he journeyed to the Sacred Oak to pray. The Great Spirit’s message to the chief was one of peace. The chief collected beads and blankets to offer the enemy, and war was avoided. Since that time, the Sacred Oak has been an especially holy place for the Lenape.

It makes perfect sense that humans have revered oak trees since prehistoric times. They provide a durable hardwood and countless products. Oaks all grow from tiny acorns and can live for centuries. More important perhaps, is the fact that other species are entirely dependent upon oaks for ecological stability.

Oaks are a keystone species, and that’s why the spread of the fungal tree disease, oak wilt, is so alarming. Oak wilt was first confirmed in Glenville, New York in September 2008, and at this point it has affected trees in at least 23 states. An outbreak was recently confirmed on Long Island by the Cornell Plant Disease Diagnostic Clinic. The disease has been spreading through Pennsylvania for a few years now, and New Jersey’s Department of Environmental Protection believes it could soon threaten the red oak which happens to be the New Jersey state tree.

Oak wilt is a relative of Dutch elm disease and it’s possible that it came to North America in the early 1900s. However, its source is unknown, and no other country has reported it. Although the disease can affect at least 16 species of oak trees, it has a greater affect on red oaks, and they seem to die off more quickly than white oak species. The oak wilt fungus, Ceratocystis fagacearum, kills oak trees by blocking the vessels that carry water and nutrients up the trunk of the tree to branches and leaves. The tree is essentially starved to death. Some trees die within a couple of months, and most die within a year.

Once oak trees become infected with the oak wilt fungus, they often become infested with oak bark beetles who help to spread the disease as they move from tree to tree. Other insects are possible transmitters of the disease, but so far, evidence is inconclusive. There is no cure for oak wilt, and the only way to maintain healthy trees is through prevention. Removal of affected trees is essential to avoid the spread of the disease, and often a soil fumigant is used after removal to kill the roots connecting trees below ground.

To avoid the spread of oak wilt here are a few of the preventative measures that can be taken: Avoid the transportation of firewood from one area to another. Never prune during the warm season. Remove affected trees promptly, and trench between diseased and healthy trees. With lots of diligence, education and a few small steps, maybe we can prevent the mighty oak from succumbing to the fate of the elm tree.

Just like the oak itself, great things can come from small beginnings.

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HUMONGOUS FUNGUS

8/3/2016

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"Everything that is in the heavens, on earth, and under the earth is penetrated with connectedness, penetrated with relatedness."
- Hildegard of Bingen

Hildegard of Bingen was a 12th century Benedictine abbess, physician, composer, writer, mystic and visionary; and in Germany she is considered to be the founder of scientific natural history. Hildegard of Bingen’s scientific writings do not necessarily stand up to modern scientific scrutiny, but many of her herbal remedies have proven effective, and without modern scientific thinking to back her up, she made many correlations that have proven to be fundamentally accurate. Her scientific and medicinal ideas sprang from working in her monastery’s herbal garden to create remedies for her patients in the monastery’s infirmary. Along with her musical compositions and prophetic theological writings, Hildegard of Bingen wrote botanical and medicinal texts.

Hildegard’s scientific works are not at all prophetic, as were her other writings. She herself described Physica as a purely practical text, but her ideas about botany and medicine were closely linked to her theological concepts. In her vision, animals, rocks, plants and people are all connected and part of a whole, created and ordered by God. She read widely from the monastery’s library, particularly the Greek philosophers, and she was a keen observer. Many consider her a genius.

Nine hundred years later, we know that she was right in many ways. Systems science shows us how the earth’s systems work together, and how humans fit into the complex overlapping, intertwining patterns and cycles of our planet’s dynamic workings.

But Hildegard couldn’t have been more right when it comes to what goes on under the earth.

Studies of fungal networks in forests have proven that what goes on under the earth is much more complex, fascinating and vital than was previously understood. Without the underground connections of fungal mycelia - the vegetative, stringy, rootlike fungal filaments that entwine themselves in tree and plant roots - old growth forests would not exist. Mycelial networks work to exchange information, nutrients, carbon dioxide and oxygen among all the trees and plants in forests, with old growth, or “mother trees” in charge of what information gets communicated. These networks are referred to as the Wood Wide Web because mycelial threads work similarly to the way the internet works. The oak tree in your yard is very likely communicating with the rose bush by your fence via mycelia. The above ground mushrooms which we all recognize, are only the visible part of the organism - but some mycelial networks can extend for hundreds and hundreds of acres under the earth.

It is thought that one mycelial network in the Blue Mountains of eastern Oregon is the largest organism on Earth. It is a humongous fungus.

“This 2,400-acre (9.7 km2) site in eastern Oregon had a contiguous growth of mycelium before logging roads cut through it. Estimated at 1,665 football fields in size and 2,200 years old, this one fungus has killed the forest above it several times over, and in so doing has built deeper soil layers that allow the growth of ever-larger stands of trees. Mushroom-forming forest fungi are unique in that their mycelial mats can achieve such massive proportions."
- Paul Stamets, Mycelium Running

There are many other enormous underground fungal networks being revealed as further research is conducted, and what was once thought to be rare, is now known to be not only common, but essential to forests. Trees and plants provide the fungi with carbohydrates, and the fungi supply nutrients, transmit information, and assist with water absorption.

Every day we are reminded of the importance of trees, and as we learn more about the importance of fungi to the health of global forests, we understand how very connected all forms of life truly are.

Hildegard of Bingen may not have been a scientist in the modern sense, but she knew the importance of trees.

"…Invisible life that sustains ALL,
I awaken to life everything
in every waft of air.
The air is life,
greening and blossoming.
The waters flow with life…

The earth has a scaffold of stones and
trees. In the same way is a person formed:
flesh is the earth,
the bones are the trees and stones."
— Hildegard of Bingen, Meditations

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Keep it green.

Little Apples

Mother Trees, Family and Pronouns

Oak Wilt Threatens NJ State Tree

HUMONGOUS FUNGUS

Brenda Cummings

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