The secret life of trees!

"Trees have a secret life that is only made known to those who climb them." - Reinaldo Arenas (Cuban writer, 1943-1990) How much exactly do we know about trees? Can we give a clear definition of them? Is it possible to compare them with other forms of life, particularly with humans? Do trees dream? Do they feel pain? Do they have memory? These and other questions are what Peter Wohlleben tries to answer in his book The Secret Life of Trees (2015), which is now in its 4th edition, with more than 300,000 copies sold around the world. Technical Sheet Original title: Das Geheine Leben der Bäume. Author: Peter Wohlleben.

Biography | Peter Wohlleben

Peter Wohlleben was born in the city of Bonn (Germany) in 1964 and after graduating from the Rottenburg School of Forestry, he dedicated his life to forest ecology. He worked as park rangers in various places and as he became familiar with the forests of his country, he realized the damage that agricultural technologies and techniques were causing to native forests. So it was that he studied forestry engineering and spent more than 20 years in the service of the German Forestry Commission.

At present, he runs a private environmental initiative in a wooded area in which he works with the aim of rebuilding primeval forests, today highly threatened. Wohlleben also gives seminars and conferences and has written several books on forests and environmental protection. Interconnections in a forest, schematizing the Wood-Wide-Web. Wohlleben's approach to trees is very similar to Jacques Cousteau's approach to the inhabitants of the deep ocean. In his book, Wohlleben tries to introduce the reader to the so-called “Wood-Wide-Web” or also known as the “Micro Critical Network”, a notion that involves the interconnection of plants and fungi - through the latter - giving an idea of collective dependence and population survival through the transport of carbon, water, nitrogen and other nutrients.

It is worth clarifying that the term "mycorrhiza" comes from the Greek "mycos" which means "fungus" and "rhizos" which means "root"; and it implies a symbiotic association between the roots of plants and fungi, in such a way that both parties benefit. Wohlleben's work and approach is also reflected in the documentary Intelligent Trees (2016) co-starred by Suzanne Simard, a professor in forest ecology at British Columbia University. On the other hand, both have conducted alone and together several TED talks as well as scientific dissemination talks in other study centers throughout the planet.

Amazing things happen in forests: trees that communicate with each other, trees that love and care for their children and their old and sick neighbors; sensitive trees, with emotions, with memories ... Incredible, but true! Peter Wohlleben, forest ranger and nature lover, tells us in this book fascinating stories about the unexpected and extraordinary abilities of trees. Likewise, it brings together, on the one hand, the latest scientific discoveries on the subject, and on the other, his own experiences in the forests; and with all this it offers us an exciting point of view, a way to get to know better some living beings with whom we believe we are familiar but whose communication skills or spirituality are unknown to us. Thanks to this book, let's discover a totally new world.