about trees and nature

One of the things I can bear the least in this world is cutting of trees and disregard for nature. Destroying a healthy tree for any purpose other than preventing an immediate danger has always been at the front row of my personal Hall of Eternal Shame. Trees are source of life so we must either take care of them or leave them in peace.

I still remember that terrible day 10 years ago, when our neighbour deforested her 1000 sq.m. piece of land in a matter of hours. No pear, no damson, no linden has survived (let alone a bird or a squirrel) because the space was meant to host some fresh concrete for a new apartment block. My opinion will hardly ever matter but I treat massive concrete creations as a major crime. Anyway. Our ex-neighbour got the chance to live happily ever after with her multilevel cement and we got a chance to relocate to another country where we kept living amidst the wildest of nature. Just as we wished to.

In this context, here’s another neighbour story which I read about in the news a couple of weeks ago. Mrs. Liu,  living somewhere north of Sydney, had cut two eucalyptus trees in her neighbour’s garden without permission because they not only threw shades over her yard but also filled her swimming pool with leaves (what a shame). The New South Wales local council failed to acknowledge Mrs.Liu’s concerns and fined her with 48.000AUD. They also requested extra 35.000AUD in administrative and legal costs. She also had to plant two eucalyptus trees in her own garden, providing the relevant authorities with regular access to follow up on their wellbeing.

Thus, by the trees you will recognise them. I have once read that “adding just one tree to an open pasture can increase its bird biodiversity from almost zero species to as high as 80” so I guess the same is valid vice versa. Cutting down just one tree because of its unacceptable habit of throwing shades or dispersing leaves affects much more than we think. Here are some of the random but interesting tree facts I have collected online over the years:

♣  In a single day, a large tree can consume 380 litres of water out of the ground and discharge it into the air as oxygen and water vapor.

♣  Trees are able to communicate and defend themselves against attacking insects. Scientists have found that trees can flood their leaves with chemicals called phenolics when the insects begin their raid. They can also signal danger to other trees so they can start their own defense.

♣  The “knock on wood” tradition comes from a time when primitive pagans used to tap or knock on trees to summon the protective spirits that resided in them.

♣  Deforestation comes in many forms, including clear-cutting for agriculture, ranching and development, unsustainable logging for timber, which ultimately makes the environment dryer and changes the climate.

♣  The rings in a cut tree don’t just reveal its age. They can also show signs of environmental changes, like a volcanic eruption or severe drought.

♣  A shade tree can help cool your home or office building by as much as 20 degrees in the summertime.

♣  Stress makes trees stronger and fungus helps them grow.