Twenty years ago Marden’s was selling trees at bargain basement prices, 10 or 25 bucks a tree. So, as much for impulse bargain shopping as for a new backyard adventure, I bought three. The white pine, the oak, and the maple all fit in my Toyota Corolla Wagon.
I knew nothing about planting trees, and I turned to neither experts nor Google for help. I dug three holes, plopped the trees in, and watered them. It worked. You can do it too.
Now, with 15 years of volunteer conservation work under my belt, I know I was making a radical environmental statement. I had planted three small ecosystems, three little natural neighborhoods where birds, mammals, insects, moss, lichens, and micro-organisms thrive. Everything in those ecosystems has contributed to a healthier planet.
Moreover, I was doing the areas around those trees a favor. The increased shade around my home helped alleviate the heat of climate change. Plus, my trees breathe in carbon dioxide and harmful ozone and exhale life-giving oxygen. Finally, their roots keep the soil in place during rainstorms. That prevents run-off into a small brook that borders my land. Less than half a mile away, the brook enters a lake.
Storm run-off threatens lakes because it contributes to algae blooms, turning pristine water hazy and green. Such blooms have been increasing recently, and extreme weather exacerbates the problem. The Maine DEP advised one lake community, in recent years, to shower after swimming in water full of algae blooms.
Until recently, extreme weather was something in the news that happened far away. But sadly, Maine is now in the fray. Everyone I know talks about how climate change and extreme weather is affecting their day to day lives.
I drive through four rural Maine towns on my daily commute to work and back. On my commute this last year, I’ve seen dozens of flattened, destroyed, and damaged trees. I shake my head in dismay. The trees lie on their sides, or they have been removed, all but the upturned roots and a short trunk. Or they lie in segments, chain sawed for later removal. It’s a type of carnage: all those ecosystems damaged or destroyed.
I know what to do. I’m going to plant a tree or two or three again. My home is surrounded by forest, and I lost no trees, so home will not be my focus.
But the high school campus where I work has an Alternative Education program that stresses hands-on, real-world problem-solving. I know those students will partner with me to plant a few trees to replace the ones damaged or destroyed by recent extreme weather which forced the school to close for two days.
Whether you live on the coast, in the mountains, or elsewhere, you’ve been affected by extreme weather. Ask any coastal fisherman or driver on dirt roads and rural highways. Trees are down everywhere, and erosion has inflicted traffic-altering damage on roads. As you view the rivers roadside, you see more extreme erosion and the washed away trees that used to prevent erosion. “Devastation” is not too strong a word. Sometimes I wish we could turn the clock back to pre-extreme weather times.
We need heroic action more than ever before. I’m just a conservation volunteer with some extra cash to spend on trees. But we need a team of activists to plant trees and repair the damage done. If you’ve never been involved in conservation, this is your chance to come to the rescue.
You might be lucky, as novice tree-planter I was, and your newly planted trees will thrive. But for expert advice on protecting your tree investment, there is 7 Lakes Alliance in Belgrade Lakes. Their mission is “conserving the lands and waters of the Belgrade Lakes for all.” Both their paid professionals and their volunteers have a wealth of tree knowledge to share with all, free of charge.
A superhero is someone who comes to the aid of those in need. Planting trees can’t reverse or help all the damage of extreme weather. But it helps an awful lot. Please help. It’s easy. All you need is a car, a spade, and water. Do it, and you’ll be a superhero. Cape not required.
And those three trees that fit in my Corolla decades ago . . . well, they are 30-, 35-, and 40-feet tall now. Not too shabby.
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