Why we love trees

“Trees are the landmarks that we crave in towns and cities…

We admire them because they are living things,

They are able to cope with so much and we are so aware of that as city dwellers.

We have that empathy and sympathy with them in difficult situations.”

Paul Wood, author of ‘Tree Hunting’

There are so many reasons why we love trees!

• • Trees are beautiful. With their varied shapes, colours and heights, trees add beauty to any landscape.

• • Trees help our brains and bodies. As well as providing us with oxygen, trees help clean the air that we breathe by filtering out pollutants, help cool our streets and provide much needed shade on hot (and rainy!) days. Trees also release chemicals (phytoncides) that help support our immune systems and research shows that even a short period of time spent in the presence of tree helps calm our nervous system and help us feel more positive.

• • Trees provide for us. Whether it’s fruit for eating, conkers for playing or berries to make natural paint, trees are a natural resource and we have benefited from them for thousands of years.

• • Trees are crucial to our ecosystems. Trees provide food and habitat for all kinds of wildlife – not just us! As an example, just one Oak tree supports over 2000 species of animals, birds and invertebrates. Trees have symbiotic relationships with fungi and moss, and share nutrients with other life forms – via the underground mycelium network.

• • Trees are integral to our shared future. Trees in urban areas help decrease temperatures on streets on the hot days we are seeing more frequently. In more rural areas they help stabilise soil, prevent erosion and act as natural flood defences.