People and Trees: An Intimate Connection - American Forests (2024)

By Ruth Wilson

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Through the ages and in all corners of theglobe, people have looked to trees to make sense ofour lives, honoring their transcendental qualities ina variety of ways. How has our interconnectednesswith trees manifested itself? The answers are many,but these pages present just a few examples — culledfrom my own experience and that of others, includingthe research of Dr. Nalini Nadkarni, discussed inher book “Between Earth and Sky: Our IntimateConnections to Trees” — of how trees meet ourneeds at every level of human experience.

TREES AND OUR PHYSICAL SELVES

Our strong connections with trees maybe based, in part, on the fact that trees andhumans share similar physical characteristics.We stand upright, have a crownon top and mobile limbs stemming from acentral trunk. The pattern of the tubularbranches (bronchi) in our lungs is similarto the root system of many trees.

At the physical level, trees provide oxygen,food and other material necessities,such as paper and building materials.

Trees also provide physical securityin the form of shelter, windbreaks and asense of place — of rootedness. Humanshave a strong preference for landscapeswith trees or wooded areas. In the realestate market, we find that trees increasethe property value of homes by four to15 percent. In areas where 30 percent ormore of the land is federally protected,employment growth over the last 40years has been three times higher thanaverage, and commercial areas with treestend to attract more customers, who shoplonger and spend up to 12 percent more.

Trees play a role in the context ofplay and recreation, as well. We use treesfor crafting musical instruments andconstructing boats and canoes. We havepicnics under the trees and take walksthrough the woods. Eight of the 25 mostpopular tourist destinations in the UnitedStates are on National Park Service land.

TREES AND OUR SPIRITUAL SELVES

At the spiritual level, trees help usbecome more aware of our connectionswith something larger thanourselves. In mythology, trees are sometimes portrayed as the abodes ofnature spirits. We even have a special word — dendrolatry — in reference tothe way we worship trees. Dr. Nadkarni suggests that trees call us to a state of“mindfulness,” where we become better in tune with and more compassionatetoward our surroundings.

Perhaps this is why sacred groves have been an important part of variouscultures throughout the world. Examples include cedar groves in Lebanon,redwood groves along the Pacific coast of North America, the Shaman forestsin south Peru and the Garden of Gethsemane in Israel. In Japan, a large numberof Shinto and Buddhist groves are cherished as sacred natural sites, whilepeople in other parts of the world and with different religions have establishedspecific wooded areas as monastic groves.

Early Greeks, Persians and other ancient peoples throughout the globeused the world tree motif — with its roots wrapped around the Earth and itsbranches in the heavens — to symbolize the potential ascent of humans fromthe realm of matter to the higher reaches of the spirit or the possibility ofmystic access from one plane of being to another.

We also look to trees for healing — not only in the medicinal sense, butfor spiritual healing, comfort and solace. We thus find trees in therapeuticgardens and cemeteries and understand why some individuals request havingtheir ashes buried at the foot of a tree or scattered in a beloved forest.

TREES AND OUR ARTISTIC SELVES

Forests and trees have inspired worksof literature, art and architecture.

In literature, Thoreau writes aboutthe “living spirit of the tree” and declaresa tree to be “full of poetry.” PoetJoyce Kilmer says that he’ll “never seea poem lovely as a tree.”

In art, the tree of life is a commonmotif used in various forms to representharmony, unity and connectionsbetween heaven and Earth, the past andpresent, death and rebirth. The symboltakes various forms, but basic elementsinclude roots, trunk, branches andleaves, blossoms or fruit. In the Jewishand Christian traditions, the tree of lifeis often used to represent the cycle oflife, death and rebirth. The Mexican treeof life often depicts religious stories,such as the tale of Adam and Eve or thestory of Noah’s ark. The motif is also atraditional Celtic symbol, where it isoften depicted as one big circle connectingall forms of life. We use the sametree of life design in “family trees” to depictconnections within a family group.

In architecture, we find variouscomponents of buildings inspired bytrees. Some columns, for example,clearly represent tree trunks; othersincorporate different parts of the tree.The palmiform column depicts eightpalm fronds tied to a central pole. Thepalmette — often found in the designof a frieze or border — represents thefan-shaped leaves of a palm tree. FamousAmerican architect Frank LloydWright used the tree of life design inone of his most popular art-glass panelsin the 1904 Darwin Martin House.

TREES AND OUR CEREMONIES

Trees are sometimes planted to commemoratespecial events, such as the birth of ababy, a graduation or a Bar/Bat Mitzvah.In some instances, trees are used as monuments,such as the Survivor Tree at theOklahoma City National Memorial, toserve as a witness to tragedy and a symbolof strength.

A tree might also be planted inmemory of a loved one who has died.Some people may plant these memorialtrees in their backyards or in a cemeteryplot, while others may have them plantedin forests as a way to honor the deceased’slove for the outdoors. Many people havetrees planted through American Forests’Gift of Trees in Memory program as a wayto honor their loved one’s memory.

In other instances, people choose to beburied under trees or have their ashes putinto biodegradable urns from which a treewill grow.

TREES AND OUR ENVIRONMENTAL ADVOCACY

At times, deep, personal experiences withtrees inspire environmental advocacy. TakeJulia Butterfly Hill, for example. Beginningin 1997, Julia spent two years living inthe branches of a 1,000-year-old redwoodto draw attention to the clear-cutting ofold-growth forests. Her actions not only ledto an agreement with the Pacific LumberCo. to preserve what came to be known as“Julia’s tree” and other trees within 200 feet of it, but also to awareness of theneed to preserve forests, leading topublic support for sustainable forestryresearch. Yet, for all the impact her vigilin the tree and her advocacy had, theywere entirely unplanned. Julia wastraveling through northern Californiawhen an impromptu stop and a shortwalk in the redwood forest changed herlife forever. It was the spirit of the forest,she said, that gripped her and calledher to do what she could to protect themajestic cathedral of the woods.

Author, conservationist and formervice president of American Forests AldoLeopold (1887-1948) was also inspiredby the forest and dedicated himself to naturepreservation — not justfor the physical well-beingof humans, but to maintainthe integrity of nature itself.Leopold worked as a foresterduring a time when forestmanagement was based ona utilitarian view, defined bywhat is useful for humans. Heproposed a dramatic changein how we view and relate tothe natural world, advocatinga “land ethic” based on preservingthe integrity, stabilityand beauty of the biotic community.His 1925 AmericanForests’ magazine article,“The Last Stand of the Wilderness,”became the basis forAmerican Forests’ national campaign forwilderness preservation.

TREES AND OUR SENSE OF PLACE

My own experience — which I am sureis shared by many others — also suggeststhat trees can foster a sense of place. Imoved frequently to different parts of thecountry and found that I could alwaysdepend on trees to help me connect withthe place where I lived.

I grew up in Ohio, where maple treesframed my life and helped me learnabout seasons and cycles and the waythings work. I soon learned to anticipatethe buds and emerging leaves in spring,shade in summer, brightly coloredleaves in fall and the quiet dormancy ofwinter. In Florida, I found the scent andtaste of oranges, grapefruit and lemonsmore reflective of the Sunshine Statethan miles of sandy beaches. While livingin Washington, I found inspirationin the ponderosa pine and sitka spruceof the Olympic rainforest. These gianttrees seemed undeterred in their strivingto reach the heavens. I now live inNew Mexico, where juniper and pinyonpine stand firm, even in sandy groundand through the onslaught of droughtand strong winds. Trees, in each ofthese very different places, helped meunderstand and adjust to the environmentin which I lived.

Unless moved by humans, treesremain rooted in one place throughouttheir lifetime, preserving their nativecharacter. They stand tall, solid andstrong, rooted in the earth. They becomean integral part of the place where theylive, a contributing member of the bioticcommunity. Perhaps there is no betterexample for us, as humans, to emulate.Listening to the trees, we can learnnot only about a particular geographicplace, but also about our place in thelarger community of life.