Tree

Description

In this clear, concise, and captivating book, renowned scientist, environmentalist and bestselling author David Suzuki tells the life story of a stately tree on the Pacific coast of North America.Lyrical and richly detailed, with stunning illustrations by Canadian artist Robert Bateman, Tree tells the life story of a single tree a majestic Douglas-fir on the Pacific coast of North America.The story begins with the release of a cloud of millions of microscopic grains of pollen that coat thousands of pine cones on neighbouring trees. One pollen grain fertilizes an egg cell to create a seed and that seed develops into the tree.We follow the tree's progress as it grows and discover what role the tree plays in the forest throughout its life - from its use a home to a succession of creatures to the crucial role it plays in the water cycle, from breaking rock down into soil to removing carbon dioxide from the air and producing oxygen. Even after it dies, the tree plays a crucial role in the forest with moss, ferns, and other plants using the tree as a nurse log, and its decaying wood providing nutrients for insects and fungi. Tree also looks at the community of organisms that share the tree's ecosystem and at the events going on in the larger world during the tree's lifetime.Tree pays tribute to a ubiquitous organism that is too often taken for granted but without which life would be impossible.1

Description

"This book tells the story of a single tree, from the moment the seed is released from a cone until, more than five hundred years later, the tree lies on the forest floor as a nurse log, giving life to ferns, mosses, and hemlocks, even as its own life is ending." "The book also looks at the tree's rich and complex relationships with other organisms in its community, from fungi and lichen to other trees to pileated woodpeckers, spotted owls, cougars, grizzly bears, and salmon, among many others. In addition, the book shows how a humble tree connects us to the atmosphere, the underworld of soil, and the world's oceans, as well as linking us all the way back to the origins of the universe and life and far into the future. Finally, the authors place their tree within the context of the growth of botany and events going on in the larger world during one tree's lifetime."--BOOK JACKET.

Subjects

Other Editions

• Tree: a life storyGreystone Books2004-01-01
• TreeHardcoverGreystone Books2004-09-16