One man’s dream of decoding the silent language of trees
Environmentalist and author Peter Wohlleben offers an anthropocentric analysis of the rich, though fast depleting, flora of our planet in his new book The Hidden Life of Trees, writes Ankita Chanda.
by Peter Wohlleben Penguin India Pages: 320 Price: Rs 499
As a child, I was fascinated to know that trees, like us, are living beings. Then, through biology lessons of course, things fell into perspective as we studied about the greens around us. However, these lessons never really had a lasting impact on me. No doubt, one was as fascinated by the lessons around life of trees, ranging from its roots to the chlorophyll, as others, but in most instances the fascination around the life of trees was short-lived.
One struggles to recall even a single instance outside the classroom when the sight of a tree sparked a discussion among friends. Isn’t it ironical that in an age when deforestation and climate change are burning issues, most of us on most occasions, despite knowing about the life of trees, fail to bring it up in our day-to-day discourse? Have we really known trees? Or, was it a mere matter of OK BO OK CO marks, which after being secured, left no relevance of trees in our lives? Silly as it may sound, the latter points towards the ground reality. For it is really peculiar, living in a world so full of trees (now declining rapidly), to learn about them within the four walls of a classroom while not being aware of these beings all around us. Lessons about the roots of trees have been learnt in the classroom by most but does the sight of an uprooted tree remind us of those lessons? Seldom.
It is not because we are unsympathetic creatures but perhaps because of a missing link between the trees around us and the trees that we see in our text books. Real things evoke more curiosity, more interest and more enthusiasm than some number of pages in a text book.
Bringing one around is a forester’s collection of fascinating stories, supported by the latest scientific research, which reveals the extraordinary world of forests and illustrates how trees communicate with and care for each other. The author of The Hidden Life Of Trees: What They Feel, How They Communicate is Peter Wohlleben, who has spent over 20 years working for the forestry commission in Germany before leaving to put his ideas of ecology into practice. He now runs an environment-friendly woodland in Germany, where he is working for the return of primeval forests. Wohlleben has authored numerous books about trees in the past. The Indian edition of this non-fiction title has been introduced by Pradip Krishen, who has authored books like Trees of Delhi and Jungle Trees of Central India in the past. He works as a “rewilder”, restoring degraded natural habitats with native plants. The opulent dinner parties thrown by Salvador Dalí (1904–1989) and his wife and muse, Gala (1894– 1982) were the stuff of legend. Luckily for us, Dalí published a cookbook in 1973,
which reveals some of the sensual, imaginative, and exotic elements that made up their notorious gatherings. This reprint features all 136 recipes over 12 chapters, specially illustrated by Dalí, and organized by meal courses.
In the introduction, Krishen reminds the readers of this masterly account: “It is sad but true that in India we live in a scientific backwater when it comes to ecological issues. Much of our plant life in India has been mapped and documented but very little of its ecology, the relationship between living things and their surround- ings. Our forest departments are prime offenders because, far from learning about or teaching us about how things ‘work’ in our forests and wilderness areas, Indian forest departments have been notoriously inimical to independent scientific research.” Krishen pitches for more openness towards independent scientific re- search and emphasises that our record towards research “seems such a shame”.
In The Hidden Life of Trees, Wohlleben shares his deep love of woods and forests and explains the amazing processes of life, death, and regeneration he has observed in the woodland and the fascinating scientific processes behind the wonders of which we are blissfully unaware. Much like human families, “parent” trees live together with their children, communicate with them and support them as they grow, sharing nutrients with those who are sick or struggling and creating an ecosystem that mitigates the impact of extremes of heat and cold for the whole group. As a result of such interactions, trees in a family or community are protected and can live to be very old. In contrast, solitary trees, like street kids, have a tough time and in most cases die much earlier than those in a group.
Drawing on groundbreaking new discoveries, Wohlleben presents the science behind the secret and previously unknown life of trees and their communication abilities — describing how these discoveries have informed his own practices in the forest around him. Wohlleben’s masterly account on the “hidden life of trees” makes for a brilliant read as long as you’re patient. Give him time, don’t skip pages, go slow and enjoy the offering at hand — this book will change your perception about the greens around us!
Much like human families, “parent” trees live together with their children, communicate with them and support them as they grow, sharing nutrients with those who are sick or struggling and creating an ecosystem that mitigates the impact of extremes of heat and cold for the whole group.