Your arborist reveals the benefits and secret lives of trees
Consider the wider impact of tree removal before going through the process. At Jarvis Tree Experts, our clients cite many reasons for wanting a tree removed from their property. Perhaps the tree sits right where they want to add a pool or home addition. Maybe it looks sick, seems too close to electrical lines, or its roots are breaking up the concrete on the driveway.
Regardless of the reason you want a tree removed from your property, take some time to evaluate the situation. A certified arborist can help you decide if tree removal truly represents the best option.
Trees enrich human flourishing in so many ways. The team at Jarvis Tree Experts focuses on ways to honor our fragile natural environment and preserve the manifold, but often invisible, benefits of trees.
Well-Known Benefits of Trees
All trees contribute to the overall health of our planet and sustain local ecosystems. The truth is that around 80% of all land-dwelling animal and plant species live in forests and jungles. Trees provide them with essential necessities like protection, food, water, and shelter. The trees on your property perform the same for plants and animals in the surrounding ecosystem.
Not only do trees and plants supply oxygen to lifeforms (like humans), which breathe it, but they also store atmospheric carbon. Trees help regulate temperature, which can reduce electric bills if they’re close enough to cast shade on parts of your home as well as preventing ground erosion. They increase privacy and often increase home values.
While most people know about the benefits cited above, there are many others.
Secret Lives of Trees
Did you know that trees have a social life? At least that’s what ecologist Suzanne Simard discovered that trees “communicate their needs and send each other nutrients via a network of latticed fungi buried in the soil.” In her thesis, Dr. Simard demonstrated how trees communicate via a network of fungi, buried into the soil. She says the fungi assist trees and other plants by sending warning signals about coming environmental changes and transferring nutrients to ailing nearby trees. The natural world leads a vibrant life above ground, but also below the soil.
Dr. Simard’s work has revealed a pathway by which other researchers can study and unlock other hidden mysteries surrounding Earth’s ecosystems and the natural world at large. Learn more by reading one of her scholarly papers.
Other provocative findings of recent research reveal highly interesting and previously unknown benefits of trees:
- A 2017 study, published in Nature Magazine and led by Simone Kuhn, et al, found that people living near trees exhibited better, “amygdala integrity.” This essentially means their brains are better equipped to handle life stressors.
- A Polish study, published in the Journal of Urban Forestry & Urban Gardening and led by Ernest Bielinis, et al, found, that “winter forest bathing,” had a psychologically relaxing effect on Polish adults. Specifically, the study found that a short wintertime interaction with a forested area had a substantial, “emotional, restorative, and vitalizing effect on the surveyed participants.”
- A Japanese study led by Chorong Song, et al, investigated the psychological benefits of walking through treed areas. Published in 2018 in Environmental Research and Public Health, the investigators studied 585 young adults and recorded their moods after walking in an urbanized environment for 15 minutes or in a forested area for 15 minutes. In every case, those who walked in the treed area reported less depression, hostility, and anxiety, and were more energetic afterward. Those relegated to walks in the urban setting experienced slightly reduced negative symptoms.
Your Arborist Will Help you make the Right Decision
Of course, there are some situations, that definitely require tree removal, but many times this can be avoided in a win-win decision. For instance, your arborist can evaluate a sick tree and determine whether treatment can heal and save it. Our tree experts can almost always make an unattractive tree look good and can eliminate hazards while saving the tree.
Trees provide a profound good to the world and by sparing them, you can become an integral part of something large and profound.
Thinking about having a tree removed from your property?
Call the team at Jarvis Tree Experts today for a no-obligation consultation about your concerns.
Originally posted 2023-10-24 08:17:28.
Originally posted 2023-10-24 08:17:28.
