Trees are sanctuaries. Let Us Save the Dying Trees!

Trees are Sanctuaries 

Let Us Save the Dying Trees!

Dr Abe V Rotor

NOTE: This tree was found a great danger to these students at leisure and passersby at the time this photo was taken. Appropriate measures were immediately undertaken.

The camphor trees at the University of Santo Tomas are facing the consequences of environmental degradation and climate change. There are many trees in the metropolis facing this grave threat. Efforts to save the trees are a great concern for every one of us. 

The effect of intermittent flooding is evident; we can even see the usual depth of flood. Water logging occurs after a sudden downpour and may last from a few hours to several days.

Floodwater deposits pollutants from oil to toxic metals. As the tree struggles to survive, termites and fungi set in, the same way we suffer of secondary infection and complications when our health is poor.

 

Wound that does not heal easily invades the whole system. Here it has reached both roots and branches, predisposing the tree to insects and rot. A gust of wind is enough to break the tree at its weakest point.

Death comes slowly as the roots fail to absorb nutrients for the leaves to use in photosynthesis. The tree actually starves to death, a process we may not readily notice until the tree defoliates and fails to produce new shoots. There's one sign though at the threshold of death which is universal to all organisms: reproduction. The tree profusely bear flowers, fruits, and principally seeds. It's nature's way of preserving the species. 

 

Left: This tree is virtually without foothold; it will certainly topple down. The pith is severely damage and new cells cannot replace it fast enough. But what precipitates death is that the wood of a tree is the conducting vessel of food and water. If this function fails, the tree, like any organism that is starved, will certainly die. It had been a long struggle it seems until this tree succumbed. 

Right: Pruned branch shows the cambium layer trying to heal the wound the same way our wound heals and later covered with scar. Untimely and too much pruning may deprive a tree from manufacturing enough food. The same principle applies that when a tree is felled, no amount of new shoots will revive the remaining stump. 

 

It's hauntingly sad to see a tree skeleton. Against the sky we see a cross we ourselves made. It is no different from the one we make to profess your faith. For faith in God and in his Creation - Nature is one. And the sin we committed in the death of trees Is mainly a sin of omission. It is simply because we seem to lack compassion - that sensitivity for other living things, which we define on a higher level of our culture as reverence. Reverence for life. 

-----------------------------
A few minutes ago every tree was excited, bowing to the roaring storm, waving, swirling, tossing their branches in glorious enthusiasm like worship. But though to the outer ear these trees are now silent, their songs never cease.  - John Muir

--------------------------

What can we do to save the trees?

1. Never use trees to post advertisements, announcements, campaign posters. Injury from nails and other materials retards growth, predisposes trees to termites and fungi, and may lead to their early demise.

2. Never carve a message on the trunk with a knife. There are better ways of expressing your affection such as planting a tree together with your loved one. A tree of love will certainly last long.

3. Don't build fire near a tree, more so at its base. Never cook food under the tree. Keep barbecue stand at a distance. Don’t throw cigarette butts, or spill drinks and chemicals.

4. Don't dump garbage near and at the base of trees. Never do composting beside a tree, or at the base of its trunk. Composting builds heat and emits poisonous gases of ammonia and sulfur which are deleterious specially to the roots.

5. On Christmas, plant trees to celebrate the Season. Don't cut trees to make Christmas Trees. Instead, simply decorate a standing tree, with care not to injure it. A potted tree seedling or sapling may be decorated in lieu of an artificial Christmas Tree. At the end of the season, plant it as an expression of thanksgiving for the Season

Before pruning, transplanting, spraying a tree, and the like, consult an expert or an agriculturist in your area. ~

 

Living Christmas Tree.  

Make Christmas Day an Arbor Day.  So with Palm Sunday. (See Article, Plant trees on Palm Sunday in this blog)  Let us plant more trees and take care of the standing ones to save Mother Earth - and us. 

 

Poinsettia - Nature's Christmas Tree

------------------------                           

*Camphor (Cinnamomum camphora) is a terpene (organic compound) that's commonly used in creams, ointments, and lotions. Camphor oil is the oil extracted from the wood of camphor trees and processed by steam distillation. It can be used topically to relieve pain, irritation, and itching. (Internet)  

   **Arbor Day is celebrated in the US on the last Friday in April (April 28, 2020). The Philippines is one of many countries that celebrate Arbor Day, a holiday dedicated to tree planting. Arbor Day in the Philippines is celebrated on June 25, it was established in 2003 to promote a healthier ecosystem through the rehabilitation of the environment. Arbor Day originated in the United States in 1872.