Trees grow almost everywhere, and we quickly get used to them. It turns out that some interesting facts about these plants can not only surprise, but also amaze those of us who are sure that they know a lot about wildlife.
Ombasira
How would you react to being asked to ride a giant tree trunk and slide down a high hill? If the proposal is enthusiastic, you should go to Japan, where the Ombashira Festival takes place every six years, or to repair the columns at the altar of the Suwa-Taishi Temple. These columns are made from spruce trunks and should be replaced every six years.
Locals and tourists alike felled suitable fir trees, chop off branches, and then lower them from the top of the hill and ride them down themselves. This is not only fun, but also dangerous, as there have been injuries as a result of the descent.
Medicines from trees
Promotional video:
The first aspirin tablets were made from willow bark, and this is far from the only medicine created from tree gifts. Like other plants, trees are a rich source of medicinal compounds. Some chemotherapy drugs in the UK are made from yew. If you live in the United Kingdom and yew grows in your backyard, you can donate it to charity for the production of essential medicines.
However, drugs are not the only thing that can be made from wood using chemistry. Methylenedioxymethamphetamine, better known worldwide as ecstasy, is made from the bark oil of the South American sassafras tree.
Deforestation slows down global warming
It sounds strange and counterintuitive, but it is. Scientists have calculated that deforestation in northern latitudes will help cool the planet. The fact is that trees absorb heat in the daytime and at night they warm the surrounding space. If the forest is cut down, then in the cold season, huge areas covered with snow, freed from dark foliage and needles, will repel the sun's rays, not allowing the earth to absorb heat.
However, the problem of deforestation is concentrated much to the south of the northern latitudes. By cutting down rich rainforests, we do not help the planet, but harm it and a huge number of species of animals and plants.
A computer game to combat woody disease
Clear dry top is a painful tree condition that spreads throughout the UK. As the United Kingdom is located on islands, massive tree diseases can have a particularly negative impact on local fauna.
Scientists turned to mobile technology for help back in 2012. The AshTag app allowed anyone who spotted a sick tree to take a photo of it and send the location data to the Environmental Protection Agency.
An even more innovative approach was demonstrated by the developers of the Fraxinus game. The game uses genetic data about trees and diseases and generates levels based on them, after passing which we help scientists process a huge amount of data.
The most dangerous tree in the world
It turns out that a tree with the title of the most dangerous tree is registered in the Guinness Book of Records. This tree is the Mancinella, a Central American plant, any part of which is poisonous and can cause death. As it turned out, even getting rid of it is impossible without harm to your own health.
The bark of the manchinella is covered with sap, which, if it gets on the skin, causes burns and blisters, and if it gets into the eyes, it leads to loss of vision. The fruits of this tree are called "apples of death", despite the sweet taste, they are very painful to eat. Even a single attempt to bite off a deadly apple can lead to the appearance of ulcers in the oral cavity, and after swallowing a piece of fruit, a person will soon die from severe poisoning.
It is impossible even to burn a manchinella without risk, the smoke from its wood corrodes the mucous membranes. It can lead to loss of sight or even suffocation.
Tree worship
The religious symbolism of trees in our life is limited to the Christmas tree and, perhaps, the willow. However, historically, many trees have been symbols of strength, fertility, growth. Their natural cycle of spring rebirth makes trees wonderful symbols for many religions.
Even today in India people continue to worship trees. The sacred fig tree Ficus religiosa is one of the religiously significant trees in Hinduism. It is believed that its leaves are spiritualized, living beings.
Japanese wonderful pine
In 2011, a devastating tsunami practically razed the small Japanese town of Rikuzentakata with a population of 30 thousand people. Before the cataclysm, the city was famous for tens of thousands of mighty century-old pine trees that grew near the ocean and were considered a natural treasure. The tsunami destroyed everything but one. The pine tree remained standing proudly, although it looked shabby, even after a natural disaster of such force.
Trees fall prey to poachers
It would seem that stealing trees is not only illegal, but also extremely inconvenient. They are gigantic, it is almost impossible to cut them down without noise, and it should be extremely expensive to export them. However, despite all the inconveniences, illegal tree felling is proving to be a very profitable business. The tree brings money, and a lot.
According to data collected in the United States, in Washington state alone, millions of dollars of trees are illegally cut down per year. In Canada, poachers cut down and removed an 800-year-old cedar. More and more countries are faced with such situations - trees are felled for expensive timber or simply for firewood.
An extraordinary way to protect trees
In December 1997, activist Julia Hill decided to protect trees from felling in unconventional ways. She climbed a sequoia in California and sat on it for two weeks. Julia not only set a world record, but also launched a practice that continues to this day: sitting in trees to protect them and protest felling practices have spread far beyond California and even the United States.
Moon trees
In 1971, astronaut Stuart Russo went to the moon as part of the Apollo 14 expedition. Rousseau, who worked as a forest firefighter before starting his astronaut career, took about five hundred seeds of various trees with him into space. These seeds have flown 34 times around the Moon.
Returning to Earth, Russo planted all the seeds, and five years later sent tree shoots throughout the country. Some even ended up abroad.
Hope Chikanchi