Trees important part of our lives

Press, 17 June 1986, Page 14

Trees important part of our lives

Trees, which have all but shed their leaves as we head into winter, are so important that without them we could not live. Apart from trees being things of beauty, they are essential to life. Like. plants they release oxygen, without which people would die. The wood from trees provides warmth from our fires; coal also comes from wood. Trees give us timber to build our homes.

Trees have given us paper to enable us to read. Some sports and some music would not be possible without trees. Trees provide homes for birds and insects, and shelter for animals — and indeed, man. The oldest living British and European tree is the yew. One in Scotland is said to be 1500 years old. The trees shedding their leaves now are called deciduous —- they

shed their leaves’once a year and at the same time growth stops in readiness for winter. In spring sap rises and leaves of deciduous trees emerge from their buds. New leaves grow through the summer, then autumn returns and the process repeats itself with the seasons. "Evergreen” trees are never completely without leaves. Leaves are shed gradually, lasting longer then a year.