To begin with, this is a story of a wife being right.
15 years ago, when we were planting the small seedlings of red mahogany (not a true mahagony, but a native gum tree known for it's red wood that's good for furniture) in a trio in the back paddock, my husband cynically said that we'll never see the trees grow that tall.
It's hard to capture the size of these trees on my phone
I was so annoyed. Why did he have to be negative and cynical? Of course they'd grow tall in our life time, and even if they didn't, wouldn't it be nice if the next person that lived here could enjoy the shade of these trees? Because I had wished that twenty years ago, someone had planted trees for our shade.
Now, when we walk past these trees, I like to say something like: 'isn't it funny that these trees grew so tall?', in the manner of a wife that is right. They must be at least thirty feet high now.
A slow growing blackwood, a kind of acacia valued for it's wood.
But this is also a story of environmental responsibility.
Because we aren't just planting trees for our own shade and to enjoy the beauty of an empty five acres made into a bush block of sorts, but for the insects, birds and other wildlife that are being pushed out by agriculture, development, climate change and degradations to landscapes here in Australia.
The casuarina or she oak - some native bird populations depend on it for survival, like the glossy black cockatoo in NSW that's now endangered.
I want to shout at people to do the same. Plant a tree or twenty this year, because you must. Because as the father of permaculture in Australia, Bill Mollison, said, if 'you don't plant a walnut tree, in twenty years you won't have walnuts'. Apply this to anything you plant, for any number of years, and it's the same thing. It sounds like a cliche, an advertisment: plant for the future, today.
The unusual but cool blossoms of a pincushion hakea
Any new development should be doing the same - filling empty spaces with trees, from open spaces to nature strips. It should be legislated. We know that planting trees helps cool places down, from small backyards to urban centres. We know they attract wildlife. If I ruled the world - thank goodness I don't - I'd make it a rule that you have to plant a bare minimum of trees every year, and large companies would be compelled to plant veritable forests.
The wattles grow the fastest - they also only last ten or so years, but their bright yellows are spectacular, and the birds love them too. The wood burns well, hot and bright like pine. We have lovely hakea, with their pinwheel flowers, gums that flower pale milky whites to bright yellows and reds where honeyeaters and parrots hang.
This huge gum on the fenceline dropped a limb that'd supply weeks worth of firewood.
The crows come and sit in the gum near the chook pen - clever avian thieves they are. One caws to let the others know what's going on, and then they descend to steal the eggs, leaving the shells wherever they fall.
There are trees I remember planting on sad mental health days, absent from the cortisol inducing classroom, and trees I remember planting on days in love with Jamie - not that I'm not now, it's just some days are brighter than others. There's trees that home bees, trees that drop limbs in the August winds that we use for firewood.
This plantation is just over our fence
Some tall trees catch best the morning sun, alit with an orange glow.
There's ones that have taken years to do much at all - perhaps it's the soil biome, reluctant to allow them to take hold. There's wide spreading trees with shaggy bark and tall elegant giraffes whose green stripes turn from pale lime in the rain to deep greys in the dry.
We no longer mow the middle half the of the acreages, as the gums suck the water that once was messy with grass and weeds. It's a small forest, there. There's also a small grove of she-oaks, that the cockatoos like.
None of these trees were here when we moved in
And to the west, a forest too, planted to absorb excess waste water from the water facility. In there hides foxes and wallabies, rabbits and possums. We aren't allowed in there, though sometimes I sneak in to look for mushrooms.
It's been so dry lately that some trees will die, particularly if their roots havent' found their way to the wet clay and the water table deep below us. We can do our best to keep them alive, of course. There's no point in writing poetry about how much we need trees unless we're doing practical things to save them.
Because it matters - for now, and the future.
With Love,
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I really appreciate this sentiment especially this part: "and even if they didn't, wouldn't it be nice if the next person that lived here could enjoy the shade of these trees? Because I had wished that twenty years ago, someone had planted trees for our shade."
I guess this goes into personal beliefs but, I have a feeling that if houses can be haunted with spirits who aren't ready to move on, then why can't forests be a safe space for spirits to come back and check on the work they did on Earth. I get this feeling when I go into old growth parts of the forests where people have tended to the trees for centuries, like someone is happy that humans/plants/animals are benefiting from the ecosystem generations later.
Oh gosh this is such a beautiful thought. If we all had belief systems like this we would live in a much more forested world! Australian forests are a little different - the real old forests, the very few that are left, are places without people ..... Once perhaps, the Aboriginals, but even then the untouched wilderness wasn't even penetrable to anyone. I love the thought of them being wholly wild without even the spirit of humans to taint them... But that's not the case as we replace ancient wilderness with plantations or cause forest fires. Australian forests grow back fast but they aren't as hardy or diverse or climate steady as old growth forests. They are more ghostly in a way. A pale imitation to the past. I don't know, it's hard to explain. Al I can do is infuse THIS land with good spirit and hope the next people feel it and add to it
Yeah I know what you mean about the ecosystem being hard to explain. When I spoke of old growth I was thinking of the Pacific Northwest of the United States where my grandparents are from and where I spent most of my teens/early 20's. That landscape has lots of old growth redwoods, pines, and berry patches. Where I live now in a dryer landscape of Argentina it is really hard to tell what is old growth because the types of trees we have don't grow quite so tall.
Personally I have always been really interested in pollinators and insects of all kinds. One thing my partner pointed out recently is that a lot of people cut down the bushes and herbs to make grassy patches between the trees. They think they are doing the right thing by leaving the trees - and they kind of are - but the pollinators are then left without much by way of flowers as trees tend to only flower in spring. So, even when people think they are doing the right thing by clearing out brush to prevent fires and making lawns for their kids to play, they are semi-deforesting the area.
Wow, I'd love to go to the Pacific Northwest one day. It seems a lot like where I grew up, well the coast anyway.
I was talking to a woman last week who had been clearing all the bark around her trees (pretty much a small forest) so she can encourage grass there. I was gobsmacked -;that's not how these forests are meant to work. All the life in that fallen matter, gone. All the bugs and small mammals and rotting wood and fungi. People don't understand.
Don't get me started!
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wow! the trees are really amazing! Imagine you planted them and now they're giving you shade. And who would have thought that they would grow this big in your lifetime? You're indeed, right - the next generation will always benefit from them in case they couldn't make it this big in your lifetime.
I remember a similar story when my father told his brother that he should help him plant 100 coconut saplings so they could have some coconut fruits to harvest one day. But his brother refused and laughed at him saying, "crazy, when will you get its fruits when you're dead?". Years passed and the coconut saplings grew bigger and taller and now they're bearing fruits and my father and his brother are still alive. This time, my father told his brother, "hey! the coconut trees are taller than you and bearing fruits, why are you still alive?", then they both laughed hysterically under the coconut trees. 😂 😆
Glad to have a quick virtual tour of your homestead. The trees are so wonderful, and yes, the wife was right! 😅 💚
Hahah I absolutely love this story, thanks for sharing!
I had planted 5 trees when we moved here in the mid 80's. One died and the other 4 had to be cut down for construction in 2019. They had grown to huge lovely shade trees and it was such a sad day when they came down. We were able to leave the magnolia, crabapple and MacIntosh trees.
So I planted a new maple in 2020, along with lots of fruit trees and elderberries. And more a couple years later. They will be big by the time I hit my 90's. But at one time, I had big trees...
Ah, I bet if we went back in time we would plant even more trees... No regrets..
The four most beautiful words in the English language...I told you so!
When we moved in here 5 years ago there was an amazing lawn, apparently called 'The Golf Course' by the locals, but not a tree in sight. We've planted at least 30 and we haven't finished yet.
It feels good to plant trees and watch them grow, doesn't it? Here the eucalyptus throw tons of seed in a boom or bust cycle, so we get tons of self seeded trees too which is a buzz. I select the good ones to put tree guards around against the rabbits.
And yes, a wry smile when we are right is also quite a good one.
Awesome, happy full moon River. Great to live the dream.
And to you! It IS a dream when I stop to take measure.
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STOPYou have a nice garden to visit every day.
I used to live in a bush, but you have no clue how ruthless birds can be as landlords.
Do you have a variety of birds? And I have EVERY idea, believe me.
Beautifully said. Trees are memory, life, and legacy they serves as a lot of things for us. We just need to plant them like your future depends on it, because it does.
😄That's totally motivating. I know that planting trees just won't take overnight. My mom recently wanted to plant lemon and oranges in our tiny yard. I haven't made that into reality but you remind me that it's worth doing and worth waiting for.
Omg we planted them ten years ago and you should see the size of my lime and lemon now!!!! And we are already eating mandarins from the ones we planted two years ago. Do it!!
I hear you! Sometimes I wish I had planted certain things when I bought my home many years ago. Everything would be so mature now. Well, The next owner will enjoy them like you said. 🤣
As long as you are growing things NOW, that's a good thing for everyone x
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