Interesting questions on respect for trees

The trees ARE fighting back - Every second of every minute of every day, nature is fighting back.
The earth is constantly trying to take back what it once had. Humans continuously build over the land, but no matter what we build, it eventually falls down. What happens next? Plants grow there. First the small ones, grass and weeds. Scouts if you will. Then the medium sized ones - bushes and birches - infantry perhaps. After that - the artillery - the big guns, the trees. Who planted them there? Not I, not you, but NATURE. Succession my friends, succession.

Need proof? Go out and look at a crack in your sidewalk. Did YOU plant the grass in that crack? The dandelion? The maple seedling?
Nature always finds a way.

Michael Leyland wrote:

I was thinking the other day, and i hope you agree, that we (humans) put alot of trust into trees...i mean...not only from us (you) climbing the trees and risking falling due to branches snapping but also property damage from roots failing etc.

Rec climbers only trust trees in so far as the climber can do a good assessment of the structural integrity of an individual tree. The tree is neutral and doesn't particularly care about the climber, it's up to the climber to make the right safety decisions before and while they're in a tree.

anyway...to get to my question, Do you think we (humans) give trees the respect they need/deserve?

As a species, the human record in regard to trees and forest is extremely bad. Per individual many humans are very respectful of trees. Many rec climbers aspire to be respectful, often the act of climbing creates respect for the tree. At a minimum it's supporting your life at that moment, respect comes naturally in those circumstances.

as an international company would you take responsibility of peace talks should one day the trees began to "fight back" against us

Trees don't have any obvious means to "fight back" against negative human impact on forests. I think humans tend to have delusions of significance when we think that trees are very aware of us or concerned with us. We're just another critter roaming around the forest. Think of a 3000 year-old old-growth Coast Redwood, humans are puny short-lived ephemerals in comparison. Just because we have advanced technological capability and large brains doesn't somehow elevate us in the context of the forest. Does a tree distinguish between a beaver cutting it down or a human with a chain saw? A tree is concerned with fulfilling its destiny as a tree, growing taller, reaching light, establishing a strong foundation, humans don't factor in from the trees "point of view". It can't run and hide when a logging operation enters the forest, it just keeps on doing what its doing until it can't anymore.

...do you like trees? do you think/know they like you?

Every tree is an individual, speaking for myself, some trees I like, some trees I fear, some trees I like and fear. I guess it's like any relationship. As I mentioned earlier I don't think trees like or dislike humans.
-moss

Baker wrote:

The trees ARE fighting back - Every second of every minute of every day, nature is fighting back.
The earth is constantly trying to take back what it once had. Humans continuously build over the land, but no matter what we build, it eventually falls down. What happens next? Plants grow there. First the small ones, grass and weeds. Scouts if you will. Then the medium sized ones - bushes and birches - infantry perhaps. After that - the artillery - the big guns, the trees. Who planted them there? Not I, not you, but NATURE. Succession my friends, succession.

Good one Baker. I think it's clear that nature in general including many trees species will far outlast the human species. The tragedy is that humans have caused and are causing massive extinction of species and ecosystems. Eventually it will all even out but in the meantime it's not a pretty picture.
-moss