The Secret Language of Trees: A Lesson in Communication

Jun 22

A walk in the woods can make any situation in life feel better as nature is our greatest healer. But have you ever wondered why it feels so good to be around a network of trees? We currently have over one billion trees living on our planet with over 60,000 species. Trees have been known to survive all extinction and have a type of resiliency we can only imagine.

What’s their secret?

Well, trees have a deep vast root social connection that relies on each other, a single tree is not capable of what a forest can do. This underground network is based on connection and cooperation, something we humans could use a lesson on. As being together, many trees create an ecosystem that that moderates extreme heat and cold, stores water, and generates humidity.Not only do they look out for themselves, but also each other. Trees help nourish one another when one is sick and help each other get back on their feet.

This type of partnerships only allows the whole to get stronger by working together, a concept we have still yet to master here on planet earth. There is another network which aides in this communication, called a mycorrhizal network, these are tiny “threads” of the greater fungal organism that wrap around tree roots which connects individual plants together to transfer water, nitrogen, carbon, and other minerals.

These signals given by trees are communicated by olfactory, visual and even electrical signals, So does this mean they are communicating by sound waves? There have been studies showing that cracking roots of seedlings were measured by the frequency of 220 hertz. This means that sound healing does exist in the forest, one of the main reasons I love to play music in nature, there is already a vibration to accompany me. Today, more groundbreaking research has confirmed that it may even be possible for humans and trees to communicate at some level.

The older mother trees provide all the nutrition for the seedlings and connect with them providing food and support. Therefore, the most important preservation should be of our elder trees. Protecting our environment is more important than ever as our resources are precious and need our attention. When designing our homes and communities, we can make choices in helping with preservation and using natural materials to keep our planet vital and healthy.