Link: https://www.terracestandard.com/news/experts-are-looking-into-how-mother-trees-can-help-reduce-risk-of-wildfires-in-northern-b-c/ with reference to https://www.amazon.com/Finding-Mother-Tree-Discovering-Wisdom/dp/052565609X .
Key excerpts:
- “The big old trees help protect biodiversity, keep carbon in the ground and help regenerate the next forest.”
- Trees might not look like they’re connected but Simard said they do “communicate” with each other below ground through a network of root systems and fungi that transmits and exchanges nutrients between them. The “mother trees” are important hubs for those networks.
- “The little seedlings that come up around these old trees hook into that network supported by the old trees,” Simard said. “The old trees send nutrients, water and carbon directly into these little seedlings and help them get going.”
- She said there is a 20 to 30 per cent increase in seedling survival when the bigger trees are left standing. The older trees also keep the ground moist and protect seedlings from drying up in the summer.
- “These old trees are really important in regenerating the next forest. When you leave old trees, the biodiversity of the ecosystem is also protected,” Simard said. “They also help reduce wildfire in these ecosystems because they have thick bark that can resist the fire.”