Trees Are Our Best Neighbors

There’s almost nothing better than sitting under a large tree relaxing in the shade and breathing in the fresh air that it offers. In fact that’s what I’m doing right now as I write this blog post. Trees are magnificent, complicated, intelligent and magical beings that deserve so much more respect than we give them. Trees are one of our biggest allies when it comes to fighting global warming, water shortages, soil pollution and so much more! 

Throughout their entire lives trees are able to communicate with one another, support each other and give the earth many amazing gifts. Trees are superorganisms that help each other, and when trees are together they can protect one another from harsh storms, droughts and flooding. Just like humans, trees love growing up in a supportive community, and are able to have longer and healthier lives when they are surrounded by other neighboring trees. 

The number one gift that trees give back to the earth is clean, fresh breathable air. Trees are able to trap pollutant gases out of the air by trapping them on their leaves and bark. This is what makes trees such a great ally when it comes to reducing global warming because of their ability to collect carbon dioxide from the atmosphere. 

Growing trees in urban areas is just as important as having large and healthy forests. Trees make cities cooler by providing shade and collecting carbon dioxide, this helps people to conserve more energy in the summer by not having to use as much air conditioning. Trees can also increase the general well being of communties. Many studies have shown that neighborhoods that have more trees tend to suffer less from depression, crime and also have increased creativity. So why wouldn’t anyone not want to live in a green city?

Here is a great website by Tree People that teaches us even more ways that trees help people and communities. I love their slogan which says, “Trees need People. People need Trees.”

I also found this TedTalk video on how trees impact cities.

Even though trees are a powerful ally to humans they are not the one and only solution to stopping global warming, but they definitely do help. We need to learn to start caring for our trees and learning how to properly take care of them because the benefits for future generations will be massive.

In my blog post about soil pollution I talked about how when soil is healthy it is able to store a lot of carbon, but without healthy trees (and plants) this would not be possible. Trees are what collect the carbon from the atmosphere. Soil is not able to collect carbon in its own without healthy trees or other types of vegetation. When trees collect carbon from the atmosphere they then send it down into the ground through their roots using photosynthesis. Trees can store a lot of carbon within their trunks as well.  Every single tree on this planet is able to collect carbon dioxide from the air. The older the tree is the more carbon it is able to collect and store. This is why it is so important to protect the trees and forests we already have, and do our best to stop companies and other people from harming and cutting down our existing forests. 

When a portion of a forest is cut down and cleared this is called deforestation. Deforestation usually happens because companies want to convert the land for agricultural uses, or the land may be used to build factories or even homes for people. Unfortunately many people see deforestation as progress, or as a necessary step for the future because the common belief is that we need more farmland to feed people, more factories to provide jobs, and more homes to house everyone, but deforestation is one of the leading causes of global warming. 

When an area of trees is cleared this adds more carbon gas emissions into the air. This happens because when a tree is cut or burned all of the carbon that was stored inside is suddenly released back into the air. Once all the stored carbon is released back into the atmosphere it is hard for it to be stored again by the small amount of remaining trees in the area.  After the trees are cut down the soil is then also dug up and tilled which releases all the stored carbon that was being kept underground into the air making our atmosphere hotter. 

Deforestation destroys natural habitats that hundreds of living organisms depend on, and sometimes it takes over a hundred years to restore these lands back to their natural state. And in some places it will take even longer due to the depleted soil and lack of water. Many countries have started to realize the negative effects that deforestation has on our planet, and governments around the world have been setting goals to try and restore the forests. 

Even though there is progress being made there’s still quite a few mistakes happening when it comes to planting trees and restoring forests. Tree planting may seem easy, but if trees are not planted or grown correctly we can end up harming the environment more than healing it. One of the biggest mistakes we’ve been making is planting monoculture tree plantations.

Monoculture tree plantations, or sometimes called planted forests, is an area of land where all the same type of tree is planted in one large area. Some monoculture tree plantations were planted in order to try and reverse global warming and to collect Co2 from the atmosphere in places where deforestation had occurred. However, instead of collecting CO2 and being able to store it properly these tree plantations have been found to add more CO2 back into the air. Tree plantations add more carbon into the air because of their lack of diversity of trees and their lack of biodiversity within these planted forests. 

When only one type of tree is planted then there isn’t enough diversity in the forest to help maintain the health of the soil. And unhealthy soil means that it isn’t able to collect CO2. Also without diversity of trees then other plants and animals can’t survive in that area either due to the lack of biodiversity.  A strong and healthy biodiversity is key to creating a forest that helps us fight back against global warming. Monoculture tree plantations are labeled as forests by many different organizations, but unfortunately they don’t provide any biodiversity and more problems have been caused by these types of tree plantations than humans predicted. Trees and soil thrive when there is biodiversity, and monoculture tree plantations are the exact opposite of biodiversity. Many scientists have labeled these areas as “green deserts” because they are unable to properly store carbon, water, or provide sufficient homes to wildlife. 

If you ever walk through a monoculture tree plantation you may notice that it is very quiet. There are no sounds of animals running through the grass or jumping through the trees. There aren’t any ponds or streams running through the trees to provide water for natural habitats. There aren’t even that many insects buzzing around the tree through the air. All of this silence is because nothing can survive in a monoculture forest besides the trees being grown in it. This is why it’s called a “green desert”. All the water that would usually run through the woods and be stored by healthy soil and evenly dispersed among the plants is being all sucked up by the trees. Without sufficient amounts of clean water and healthy soil then nothing else can grow and no wildlife will live in this area. 

Another factor that makes monoculture tree farms bad for the environment is that a lot of the trees that are typically grown are not native to the area they are being planted in. Entire ecosystems can be disrupted if the wrong type of tree is planted, so we have to make sure we plant trees that are either native to the area they are being planted in, or that we are planting trees that will adapt easily without causing harm.  When tree’s aren’t native to the area this can lead to the them drinking too much water and causing droughts. They also won’t be able to provide the right types of foods or nutrients to other species in the area. Trees can take thousands of years to adapt to different climates in order to properly benefit the land around them, so making sure to plant the correct types of trees is extremely important in order for a forest to remain healthy.  

So now we know that monoculture tree plantations are bad for the environment because they don’t provide biodiversity and they are typically not native the land which can cause major problems within the ecosystems around them. One last problem with these green deserts is that a lot of these trees don’t get to live very long lives since they are cut down after 20-50 years, or less, to be used for making cheap paper, cardboard, rubber, palm oil and many other types of products. Cutting all these trees down adds more carbon back up into the air and leaves the land looking like an actual desert since the tree plantation ruined the soil. When these trees are cut down and harvested the cleanup and restoration of the land typically falls on the shoulders of the people that live in that area, and many communities don’t have proper resources to restore the land. Monoculture tree plantations not only hurt the environment but they can also harm human communities and make areas unlivable for both humans and animals. Monoculture tree plantations use a lot of pesticides and harsh fertilizers that end up in the water after being cut down, and this has large impacts on human communities around the world. 

Here is an amazing article written by the Global Forest Coalition on how deforestation and monoculture tree plantations have impacted communities around the world the women within those communties. This article really proves how in the long run deforestation is never the better option for progress or building a better future.

Trees can be a very powerful ally when it comes to reducing global warming. Going forward it will be very important for communities to come together and begin restoring old agricultural land back into their natural forests or other forms of ecosystems. So what can we all do to save the forests and grow more trees that will collect carbon from the air?  There is so much that we can do to start restoring forests and fight back against global warming, and knowing how to properly plant trees is a major first step! 

One of my favorite programs that helps to restore forests is called Ecosia!

Ecosia is a search engine that uses your searches to earn money to plant trees. They are an amazing company that really pays attention to their impact on the world. They are very upfront and honest with all the work they do, and I trust them more than any other company out their that claims to plant trees. Here is the Ecosia info page to learn more about them. Switching to their search engine is super easy and is a great step forward in helping our planet, especially if you use the internet a lot.

Here are some YouTube video that Ecosia has made that explains how the company works and also how to take better care of the planet. I also recommend subscribing to their YouTube channel for some great eco-friendly content.

Trees grow very slowly and need a lot of care and attention when they are young, just like animals or humans. Both big and small trees all matter in a forest. It’s most important to remember that all trees' well-being depends on their community, which also includes the humans within their diverse forests and neighborhoods. If you and your community are working on restoring land back into a healthy forest, or even just adding more trees to your street, then it’s important to understand that the trees will need to be properly looked after for the first couple years of their life (or even sometimes their entire life). 

Restoring a forest, which is called forest restoration, or even planting just a handful of trees can be hard work, so here is a quick list of questions to ask yourself and others before beginning the planting process. 

  1. Are the trees native to the area? 

  2. Will the trees benefit the local ecosystem and support biodiversity? 

  3. Will the trees benefit the community, and will the community look after them? 

  4. And are we planting a diverse forest or a monoculture tree plantation? 

The more that everyone knows what a healthy and sustainable forest looks like versus a green desert, the easier it will become to take better care of our planet. 

Even though trees are capable of collecting carbon dioxide from the air and cooling down our planet we need to remember that trees alone will not save us from global warming. This responsibility still mainly falls on large companies cutting down their uses of fossil fuels. Our world needs to begin shifting towards renewable energy and focus on using less as a whole. And when it comes to the trees, stopping mass deforestation will also help to reduce global warming.

Trees are our friends and neighbors. If we can all learn and accept this simple concept then I believe we will major positive impacts around the world.

Below are more websites and videos on trees and forests if you’re interested in learning more.