When a tree is cut, the stem of the tree remains in the soil most of the times. This coconut tree gave us its produce for about forty years, till it was struck by lightning. Its stem reminds me of its majestic presence seventy feet tall!
I happened to count the number of stems of trees with their roots embedded in the soil in our property. I found seventy. Some trees like teak sprout again from the stem. If allowed to continue to grow it can grow to be a tree although at a slower pace than when assailing is planted.
What is beneath the tree is a root system which spreads far and wide. There is a debate about some trees consuming the ground water profusely for their survival. The Eucalyptus tree belongs to that category.
It is the root system that 'ploughs' the soil. When a new root sprouts, it moves the earth in its course, thereby keeping the subsoil system loose for biological growth of insects, earthworm, etc.
The root system of the trees is in touch with each other. In fact they might even share the between themselves the nutrients.
I found a book, The Hidden Life of trees by Peter Wohlleben, extremely useful because his theme of the book is that, 'trees in the forest are social beings'. His proposal is that they' feel and communicate'. As a woodsman, who was given the responsibility to manage the Eiffel mountains in Germany, wrote about the 'struggles and strategies of beeches and oaks, deciduous forests and coniferous forests planted for commercial gain..'. This story of the hidden life of the trees is a fascinating reading.
His campaign to honour trees led to use of horses to uproot trees when required rather than use machines to fell them in the forests at Hummel in Germany. Peter suggests that, 'your next walk in the forest will discover for yourself wonders great and small'!
M.C.Mathew(text and photo)
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