In preparation for children’s time on Sunday, 12 July, here is a little background.
We have come to understand that God is our Maker, the Creator of the whole integrated biosphere in which we live. All life has something in common: we are created.
The story we will hear comes from Annette LeBox & artist Crystal Smith. It is based on an amazing discovery that was made by one of the scholars at UBC’s forestry faculty. It is a discovery that helps us all understand both trees and God, just a little bit better. Here is Ms. LeBox’s introduction to the story. Science can build our faith, rather than destroy it.
For many years, foresters believed that trees competed for food, water and nutrients. Yet Suzanne Simard’s scientific research pushed against that very idea. She proved that forest ecosystems are cooperative. Mother trees, the largest and oldest trees in the forest, connect with mycorrhizal fungi beneath the earth. The fungi and the trees help each other out. Fungi wrap themselves around the tree roots to form an underground communication network that Simard calls the Wood Wide Web. Mother trees use these fungal threads as pathways to send sugar to their younger trees. Fungi send nutrients from the soil to the trees. In return, mother trees feed fungi sugar.
Dr. Simard proved that trees of different species such as Douglas fir and paper birch loan each other sugars during times when they need varying amounts of energy. In spring and fall, deciduous trees like birch are leafless. Without leaves to absorb sunlight, birches produce little sugar, so firs share their excess sugar.
In summer, the leafy birches return the favour by sharing sugar with firs. In a mixed forest, the shaded firs must compete with leafy trees for sunlight, therefore they produce less sugar. Cooperation among trees leads to a healthier forest.
Although Dr. Simard proved that fir and birch trade sugar, other scientists are looking to see how common this is in other species.