Forests For Life

If we are looking for effective carbon sequestration, never mind feeble and overpriced industrial solutions. We need to look at a real leader in the sector.

I am referring to forests. 

Home to about 80% of the world's biodiversity, forests are collectively the second biggest storehouse of carbon after oceans, absorbing significant amounts of greenhouse gases. 

They also enhance biodiversity, while protecting waterways, enhancing soil nutrition, and providing buffers from natural disasters.

All of that, and they are beautiful places to live or visit. How dull life would be without trees and forests. And how different life would be. 

Some believe that civilization would have been impossible without trees. 

How sad it would be if we destroyed all the primal/old growth forests of the world, a task that is frighteningly close to completion.

Not only are such forests living history books, but they are also carbon sinks that rival any kind of expensive human solution in industrial sequestration.

Once those forests are gone, they will take centuries, eons in some cases, to replace. And for what? A few jobs and temporary profits. 

How sad. 

Considering their importance, we should show trees and forests respect and gratitude more often.

We should also do everything within our power to protect what little old growth that is left. It is those ancient forests that absorb and hold the most carbon, if that is to be one of our goals.

Protect forests and we retain one of our best ways of mitigating our effects on the atmosphere.

Trees are our friends. Forests for life.

Tree Art - Mark Gauti

Tree/Ent by Mark Gauti

Mark Gauti is a local artist that does beautiful Coast Salish art. I love his work and how he incorporates  traditional and modern in his images. I especially love his depiction of a tree being in "Tree/Ent".

Ents are tree creatures in the Lord of the Rings trilogy. They are tall, slow, patient creatures which live in the forest of Fangorn and exist to protect the trees.

When I go out into the rainforest I see ents everywhere. They are the elders of the forest. Towering, wrinkled, and shaped by the centuries, they are as individual and distinctive as people.

But we have a problem.

In the Lord of the Rings all the ents are male. No mention is made of female ents, although surely they do exist. Luckily I have the solution.

In the coastal rainforest the straight and strong Douglas fir ancients are the male ents. In old age these tree beings take on the classic look as in the Fangorn Forest. Their ancient limbs are held at attention and are often twisted and broke by tussles with winter gales.

Dripping with old man's beard lichen they stand rigid and determined over the ages watching from their lofty heights over the forest.

And the females? Why they are the Western red cedars of course with their gracefully drooping limbs and feathery braided needle leaves. The female ents have fine stripped reddish paper dresses that peel and flutter in the wind.

When winter comes female ents don't defy the gusts and gales like the male ents. Instead of fighting they go with the flow as they dance and sway uninhibited. They smell good too.


Old Douglas firs, especially when dripping sap on a hot summer day, smell like a cross between a musky earthiness and aftershave. Ancient Western red cedar, on the other hand, smell like the most amazing perfume.

Maybe Mark Gauti will do a companion piece to the one above depicting a female ent. Either way, I love what he did with "Tree/Ent".

The following is from Mark's "Trickster Art" Facebook page:

Biography 

Mark Gauti is a Coast Salish Artist from the T’Sou-ke First Nation. T’Sou-ke Nation is a Coast Salish Tribe on the border of Coast Salish territories and Nuu-chah-nulth territories. T’Sou-ke shares art and culture with the two different tribal groups. Mark uses a wide range of mediums in his art, including: paint and canvas, glass acid etching, drum making, wood carving, photography and digital art. 

Mark worked as an environmental scientist for many years for his tribe T’Sou-ke where he was involved mapping of endangered species and gathering traditional ecological knowledge on traditional uses of native plants for food and medicine. For the past ten years mark has been involved in Coast Salish Culture with participating in drumming, language programs and Tribal Canoe Journeys, as well as researching traditional art and storytelling. Understanding that traditional First Nation’s art and storytelling was the original form of environmental education Mark starting mixing culture with more modern environmental programing with T’Sou-ke and now continues this work with other tribes.  

In Pacific Northwest Coast stories, tricksters are the ones who take on a job that no one else will, often leading to change, and Mark considers his art to be trickster art because he is an environmentalist who sees the way we are treating the earth as wrong and uses art as a form of environmental and cultural education.

Marks' website can be found here.

Bad Mood? Take A Hike

Technically speaking it is possible to walk in the woods and be in a bad mood, and this meme reminded me of the proof that I possess. I know it can happen because I have seen it personally.

While hiking the West Coast Trail, a 72 km forest and beach experience, a hiking partner in our group developed an abscessed tooth. He was not a happy camper while carrying his backpack and sore face through the incredible forests as we neared the end of the trail at Port Renfrew. 

He was even less impressed when while hiking hard with head down he drove his noggin into a huge log suspended across the trail. The impact threw him backwards and he landed on his behind on the mossy boardwalk. 

For a moment his walk in the woods did indeed make him forget about his sore tooth. But only for a moment before the throbbing pain made its way back into his awareness. 

Generally however, a bad day in the woods is better than a great day at the office. Maybe not as good as an emergency visit to the dentist.

The exposure to trees may not cure an abscessed tooth, but it does do wonders for a bad mood. Try it!

National Forest Week - The Greenest Workforce

The American Martin lives in Canadian forests from coast to coast.
Destruction of forest habitat has reduced its numbers.

Everyone likes a party, and this week is a nation wide celebration. National Forest Week asks Canadians to join in a celebration of our trees and forests. How could that be bad?

Unfortunately, most of the information I have seen online is geared toward viewing our trees and forests as "resources" to be used for the sole benefit of humans.

“Canadians can actively engage in this year’s National Forest Week theme by inviting foresters into the classroom to teach students about Canada’s world leading progressive forest management practices. 

Students can also learn about the innovative green products that can be made from forest fibre such as cosmetics, car parts and clothing.” - Dave Lemkay, General Manager of CFA.

The slogan for this year highlights the importance of these forest resources, and focuses on extraction and jobs. The Canadian Forestry Association web site has a prominent headline stating "National Forest Week to Highlight 'The Greenest Workforce' Brand.

What kind of brand is this? Cutting the last of the old growth is not green by anyone's reckoning. In order for a renewable, sustainable cut in old growth forests you would need a harvest cycle of a few hundred years. Perhaps longer, and certainly much longer than a few decades.

Not mentioned anywhere is how many Canadian forests are being depleted, including those on Vancouver Island. The CFA was even created to address this very problem... back in the early 1900s. I am sure they have done, and continue to do good work, but this year's National Forest Week seems to have been hijacked by government and corporate interests.

American Martin range.

This "celebration" seems to have a focus on advertising and support for the forestry industry. Sure humans need forests (it has been theorized that civilization would be impossible without them), but we are far from the only users of these "valuable resources".

Little is said about the importance of intact old growth forests for their life-giving services like filtering water, preventing erosion, and providing critical habitat for species that can't live anywhere else.

To celebrate this week take the CFA up on their challenge to learn more about what is happening in our forests. Chances are you may not like what you find out. From short rotation periods that create perpetual tree farms void of diversity, to cutting visual barriers established by rules that have been thrown out by the BC government, there is a lot that needs to be done to set things right.

After your research you may be interested in joining the real "Greenest Workforce" - they are called environmentalists, and most work as volunteers out of their deep love and respect for trees, forests and the species that live there.

Don't have time to get involved? Consider donating to an organization near you and have them do the legwork. The Ancient Forest Alliance is a good place to start. They are "a British Columbian organization working to protect the endangered old-growth forests of BC and to ensure sustainable forestry jobs in the province. It was founded in January of 2010 and is run by BC environmental activists Ken Wu, TJ Watt, Joan Varley, and Hannah Carpendale."

Happy Forest Week. Wednesday is designated as National Tree Day, so get out there and hug your favourite tree or trees. We tend to protect what we love.

New on VIBT - Tree Identification

I have added a new button at the top of this blog underneath the title banner. Clicking on the "Tree Identification" button will take the curious forest adventurer to a page with tree identification information. A link is provided that will lead the extra-curious to even more information about the British Columbia's amazing trees.

Learning more about the unique forests of Vancouver Island could consist of vacationing among the trees and identifying a few. Or, it could mean spending a lifetime getting to know the neon green forests of wrinkly, moss covered giants. Unlike the ancient trees around you, your fascination will never grow old.

The information on the id page was selectively harvested from the forest of information that has been
compiled by the government of British Columbia.

The Tree Book, one such government publication, is a basic introduction to the major tree species in the province. Of these, most grow on Vancouver Island, and of those I have selected a few of the more obvious and sought after tree species to share.

Enjoy learning more about Vancouver Island's big beautiful trees, and next time you are out in the forest you can put your tree knowledge to the test.

The more you learn about these trees, the more you will want to protect them and the special places that they grow.


Click on the Tree Identification page button above, or click here to connect directly.

Tree House Art Car Brings Bit of BC Forest to Burning Man

The tree house art car, built on Vancouver Island, will bring a bit of the forest
 to the Burning Man Festival in Nevada, USA.

How do you celebrate BC trees and forests while in the treeless, water-challenged Nevada desert, site of the Burning Man Festival? Bring a bit of the forest along with you by building a tree house art car, then invite the crowds in among the trees.

That is what a group of Vancouver Islanders are doing with their creatively converted old school bus.

"It's a nod to the BC forest," stated one of the participants working on the project.

Work in progress - the forest is growing.

Some nice BC wood was used on this tree house project, which is currently spreading the sweet smell of tree sap over the dusty flat lands of Burning Man.

Read the article in the Times Colonist here, or go to the tree house art car website to learn more about this creative conversion.

"People all have great memories of tree houses when they were little, whether they fell out and broke their arm, ate a mud pie, made out for the first time or read Playboys. And it’s a nod to the B.C. forest.” 

- Melanie Golder, tree house art car team

Resting Under Trees

Fire-scarred Douglas fir trees along Sooke Basin on the Galloping Goose Trail.
A good place to rest on a hot summer day.

"Rest is not idleness, and to lie sometimes on the grass under trees on a summer's day, listening to the murmur of the water, or watching the clouds float across the sky, is by no means a waste of time."  - J. Lubbock

Advice From A Tree

I would add:

• be flexible
• don't take more than your fair share
• cooperate with your neighbours
• enjoy the sunny days AND the rainy ones
• do what you can, with what you've got, where you're at

Cooperation In The Forest

A forest is the ultimate sustainable cooperative community

Trees are but part of the larger forest, 2/3 of which is unseen under our feet. Also unseen is the incredible amount of cooperation that takes place in the forest.

There are many mutually beneficial relationships between species, creating a web of working together to form an entity much larger than any of its parts.

Everything has a role to play in building and maintaining the forest. It would continue in perpetuity, if we would allow. A forest is the ultimate sustainable, cooperative community.

Instead of wiping trees and forests out, we should be studying them and learning their valuable lessons.

Mushroom (mycorrhiza) Cooperation

"In the early 1990s mycologist Suzanne Simard and her team at Oregon State University discovered that cobwebby networks of mycorrhiza could connect not only many trees of the same species but also trees of different species.

They encountered birch connected to fir trees by up to ten different species of fungi. Moreover, birch trees growing in bright sunlight seemed to be subsidizing fir trees in the shade by sharing sugars via their mycorrhiza network."  - source: backyardnature

10 Ways Trees Are Better Than People

Society knows the price of trees, but very little of their value. Indeed, it is hard to overestimate the value of trees.

There are some that believe that the end of trees and forests means the end of civilization. But still some people insist on continuing the deforestation of our planet for short term gain. I often wonder what is wrong with them.

This leads me to believe that in some ways trees are better than people. There is a lot to be learned from the wisdom of trees if only we took the time to observe and learn.

10 Ways Trees Are Better Than People

1. Trees stay put in one place and do no harm.
2. Trees support each other in cooperative communities (forests).
3. Trees withstand centuries of harsh conditions without complaining.
4. Trees don't take more than they need to survive.
5. Trees are patient. Very, very patient.
6. Trees improve the environment in which they live.
7. Trees don't do crazy things to impress other trees.
8. Trees don't get messed up and kill others of their kind.
9. Trees give, and give with no expectation of reciprocity. 
10. Trees are frequently harmed by humans, but rarely are humans harmed by trees.

We would be wise to emulate trees. If we did the world would be a better place for trees and people alike. Visit a tree near you and spend some quiet time with it. It will, over time, pass on what lies deep in its heart(wood). You will be a better person for it.

"Because they are primeval, because they outlive us, because they are fixed, trees seem to emanate a sense of permanence.  And though rooted in earth, they seem to touch the sky.  For these reasons it is natural to feel we might learn wisdom from them, to haunt about them with the idea that if we could only read their silent riddle rightly we should learn some secret vital to our own lives." - Kim Taplin

Walking In The Big Trees Has Health Benefits

"In every walk with nature one receives far more than he seeks."- John Muir

I always felt that spending time in the forest had health benefits beyond the immediate exercise. Now, repeated studies support what many have felt for a long time - a walk in the forest is a very good thing for physical, mental, and spiritual health.

In Japan people visit nature parks and spend time among the trees practicing ‘Shinrinyoku’, or forest bathing. Doctors prescribe time in the forest for the health benefits of nature. Research has shown that this contact reduces stress levels, and strengthens the part of the immune system that fights cancer.

The Japanese Society of Forest Medicine, established in 2007, conducts studies to test the beneficial effects of nature, forests in particular. One study lead to the recommendation that repeated forest bathing may help decrease the risk of stress-related illness.

Not only that, but the unique forest smell has beneficial effects as well. Another study of forest bathing attributed increased immune activity partly to breathing in air containing phytoncide (wood essential oils) like α-pinene and limonene. These oils are antimicrobial volatile organic compounds emitted from trees to protect them from rotting and insects.

Two of Vancouver Island's native trees, the Western red-cedar and Douglas-fir, are rich in essential oils. The wood of these trees has long been known for being rot resistant, but now it looks like sniffing them can help us boost our immune system and resist some cancers. The researchers found that the elevated immune response was evident for many days after being in the forest.

Recently forest advocates in a different part of the globe were also extolling the virtues of trees and forests. Medical practitioners in Wales are being urged to prescribe their patients a walk in the woods as a natural treatment for a range of physical and mental health conditions.

Forestry Commission Wales wants to encourage doctors to prescribe a walk in the woods instead of referring them to their local gym. The commission believes that walks in the woods can help people live longer, healthier lives.

Dr. Li's Tips For Forest Bathing:

• If you take a whole day, it is better to stay in the forest for about 4 hours and walk about 5 kilometres. If you take a half day forest bathing, it is better to stay in the forest for about 2 hours and walk about 2.5 kilometres.
• If you feel tired, you can take a rest anywhere and anytime you like.
• If you feel thirsty, you can drink water/tea anywhere and anytime you like.
• Find a place in the forest you like. Then, sit for a while and read or enjoy the beautiful scenery.
• If it is possible, it is better to take a hot spring bath (a spa) after the forest bathing.
• You can select the forest bathing course based on your purpose.
• If you want to boost your immunity, a three-day/two-night forest bathing trip would be recommended.
• If you just want to relax for reducing your stress, a day trip to a forest near to your home would be recommended.
• Forest bathing is just a preventive measure for diseases; therefore, if you come down with an illness, I would recommend you to see a doctor – not visit a forest.

VIBT heartily recommends a forest bath today. Forests as small as 1 acre have been shown to be large enough to produce benefits. Not yet studied, but more than likely beneficial as well, are walks in parks with a good density of trees.

Have fun wherever you immerse yourself in nature, and rest assured that you are benefiting from bathing in everything the forest freely offers.

2011: U.N. International Year Of Forests

Tree and forest protection is going global this year. Tree loving people everywhere are celebrating as the United Nations has declared 2011 the International Year of Forests.

A calender of activities throughout the year, as well as a website, aim to provide "a global platform to celebrate people’s action to sustainably manage the world’s forests".  

People's action. That's us - you and me - and action is the key word.

The United Nations General Assembly took this step "to raise awareness on sustainable management, conservation and sustainable development of all types of forests".

Deforestation is a global problem, including here in British Columbia's beautiful forest lands, public and private.

Deforestation occurs for many reasons: trees or derived charcoal are used as, or sold, for fuel or as lumber, while cleared land is used as pasture for livestock, plantations of commodities, and settlements. The removal of trees without sufficient reforestation has resulted in damage to habitat, biodiversity loss and aridity. It has adverse impacts on biosequestration of atmospheric carbon dioxide. Deforested regions typically incur significant adverse soil erosion and frequently degrade into wasteland.

Disregard or ignorance of intrinsic value, lack of ascribed value, lax forest management and deficient environmental laws are some of the factors that allow deforestation to occur on a large scale. In many countries, deforestation, both naturally occurring and human induced, is an ongoing issue. Deforestation causes extinction, changes to climatic conditions, desertification, and displacement of populations as observed by current conditions and in the past through the fossil record. - from Wikipedia

We can stop the greed and destruction. We can stop corporations and governments that seemingly have no regard for the environment, our communities, future generations or species extinctions. There is no time like now to make a difference. Take advantage of 2011 and the International Year of Forests to take action.

How will you protect and celebrate our forests during the coming year? Let VIBT know and we will share your ideas in posts throughout the year. Let's show them what the power of the people looks like. The trees need us.

 About The Logo

The International Year of Forests 2011 logo is designed to convey the theme of “Forests for People” celebrating the central role of people in the sustainable management, conservation and sustainable development of our world’s forests.

The iconographic elements in the design depict some of the multiple values of forests and the need for a 360‐degree perspective: forests provide shelter to people and habitat to biodiversity; are a source of food, medicine and clean water; and play a vital role in maintaining a stable global climate and environment.

All of these elements taken together reinforce the message that forests are vital to the survival and well being of people everywhere, all 7 billion of us. From: http://www.un.org/en/events/iyof2011/index.shtml