the real importance of trees in our life
Nature

The Real Importance of Trees In Our Life

Before we get into the discussion of the real importance of trees in our life, let’s have a brief look at what nature has given to us, it gave us whatever it can possibly give us. Nature has given us everything to have a minimalistic and basic life to survive in this world.

We were given Air to breathe, water to drink and Trees for food. We were also given various other resources for a variety of needs. Humans have a lot of needs and as the centuries passing by, the needs of the human have been increasing in large factor.

Humans are very dependent creatures like any other creatures living on this huge planet. We depend on various things apart from basic resources like air, water and food. Like We depend on animals for food and transportation.

We, humans, are intelligent enough to rule this world, and we are also bad enough to destroy this beautiful world with our nature of “wanting more”. Like we need trees for food and we also need trees for making furniture in homes.

Why am I discussing all these, rather than discussing the real importance of trees in our life?

The reason is, trees are very much linked to nature and human behaviour towards them.

The Real Importance of Trees In Our Life

Trees and History:

Let’s first look at some history about Ashoka the great from India. After his conversion to Buddhism, He became calmer and made friendly relations with Tamil kingdoms Cheras, Cholas and Pandyas.

And he did very well to his kingdom and people in his kingdom. But what actually important is, he is the person in India who started the Idea of planting trees along the roads for the benefit of the common people. The importance of Trees have been realised not now but thousands of years ago.

Tree Releases Oxygen:

The vital role of trees is that its stores’ carbon dioxide and releases oxygen for the living organisms. Trees are not here for decades, they are around us for thousands of years. Some of the trees that we see today are somehow were planted by natural happenings. They grew to very big sizes.

It is being said that a well-grown tree can produce oxygen for 10 to 20 people for a year. Now we can understand how important trees can be in our life. We are breathing today because of the trees.

Trees And Children:

We must have played under big trees at some point in our childhood. Trees are great protection from the sun in the summer season for children to play.

Every person in this world directly or indirectly will have a connection to these trees having a big trunk and branches. Those little moments of joy ness where we used to climb the tree and cut fruits. Those are beautiful tree memories. Everyone will have this kind of memories.

Trees As Sacred:

In India, people consider trees as sacred and they worship trees. In old temples of India, we see at least one big tree.

Yes, trees have a great connection with Indian people. Not only India, but a lot of other neighbouring countries like Bangladesh and Nepal also consider trees as sacred.

Some Sacred Trees:

  1. Tulsi
  2. Peepal
  3. Banyan
  4. Bael
  5. Mango
  6. Neem
  7. Banana
  8. Coconut
  9. Sandalwood
  10. Lotus
  11. Star Jasmine
  12. Kadamb

Trees As A Platform:

In ancient times when there were no courts and police, people in Indian villages sit under a big and discuss problems and solve them.

Not only for that, but many families in villages go to the nearest forest with all food and necessary items and live under trees for a day. It is more like a festival for them.

Trees Can Decrease Temperatures:

Having trees around the house can easily decrease the temperature of the house by 50%.

Trees for Materials:

Does not matter how much we talk about trees, it is always less to describe them and their greatness in building the earth with living things.

Five out ten materials we use in our day-to-day life will have wood made.

Let’s talk about our living houses, 80 % of the furniture would be from the tree’s wood.

In olden days, when there were no cement and bricks. People used to cover the houses with lots of wood logs.

Trees As Medicines:

In olden days, since there were no medicines at that time as we have today, trees are the solutions for a lot of medical treatments in those days.

In some of the films of the 1900s, we observe a lot of medical treatments are done with leaves and fruits of trees. We always wondered like are they really work?.

But the fact is a lot of technological medicines we use in today’s world are from trees. And some are gathered from the animals.

Let’s not forget about Ayurveda treatment in India. Ayurveda is a way of healing a disease only with natural resources like trees. They don’t use any modern medicines to cure. However, it may not work on severe diseases.

People are opting for modern medicines, the interesting is decreasing for Ayurvedic medicines due to the huge awareness of technology and literacy rate in countries.

And modern medicines are very quick in acting and heal fast unlike Ayurvedic medicines which are very slow in acting.

Trees Accelerate wildlife:

We cannot just deny the fact that a single tree can host a lot of micro to mini organisms inside and on top of it.

Trees provide an amazing habitat for birds, insects and fungi. Some trees contain hollow openings in which a lot of bats, woodboring beetles, tawny owls and woodpeckers.

Trees Can Increase The Economic Growth:

Whenever we see big companies and Institutions, we observe a lot of trees been planted in their surrounds. It is because having trees planted at the workforces of the office can increase the outcome.

In India Government Institutions we see a lot of trees just because of this reason. And also trees can keep surroundings pleasant with fresh air and leads to a healthy atmosphere.

Now let’s see some of the interesting facts of trees you don’t know.

Facts Of Trees You Don’t Know:

  1.  Trees are the longest living organisms on earth, they have been here on earth for ages.
  2. Trees decrease the surrounding temperature by evaporating water from leaves.
  3. A Tree drinks about 2000 litres of water each year.
  4. Pine trees are the only species that spread seeds in cones in this whole world, and those cones also have genders.
  5. Antarctica is the only continent in which Pine Trees won’t grow. Remaining six continents have pine trees.
  6. By slowing and filtering rain water, Trees improves the quality of rainwater.
  7. The various parts of a tree grow at different times of the year. Typically, most of the foliage growth happens in the spring, after that trunk growth in the summer and root growth in the fall and winter.
  8. Trees did not exist for the first 90 per cent of the history. Trees are just 470 million years old and the earth is 4.5 billion years old.
  9. The tallest trees in the world are redwoods. These trees can easily reach heights of 300 feet (91 meters).
  10. The General Sherman tree is found in Sequoia National Park and is believed to be the world’s largest tree by volume.
  11. With 642 billion trees, Russia is the country with most trees.
  12. The Faroe Islands with less than 1% covered in forest and with fewest trees in the world.

Now let’s see some of the daily used tree products.

Everyday Items Made From Trees:

Sponges:

We use sponges whenever we need it. Believe that some of the sponges come from trees. Sponges are generally made from the wood pulp and cotton fibre. These sponges release fewer environmental toxins than their plastic counterparts.

Chewing Gum:

Another interesting product from trees is Chewing Gum. The gum that we chew today came from the sapodilla tree that grows in the rain forests of Central America. It was actually introduced in the United States first.

 Chocolate:

Whenever you eat chocolate, don’t forget that it is most loved eatable item from trees. Nowadays everyone knows about Chocolate and most people in fact like chocolates and eat on regular basis. Chocolates actually came from cacao trees from amazon. These trees can also be found in South and Central America, the Caribbean and other humid and tropical climates in both Africa and Asia.

Hair Dye:

Have you got white hair and you want to cover it with some natural colour alternative to chemical colours, then the Natural hair dye from the Henna Tree is for you. Most Indians use Henna at regular intervals to colour their hair. Henna comes from a henna tree which is completely natural. People also use Nutshells, including walnut shells to create different coloured dyes.

Latex Rubber Gloves:

natural latex rubber comes from Hevea brasiliensis, better known as the rubber tree. people get fluid under the tree bark and use it to make Rubber gloves. We use rubber gloves in household and medical purposes.

Now you not only know the real importance of trees in our life, but also some of the facts of trees.

Also, here are a few hand-picked articles for you to read next:

Sandesh Naroju

Being a nature lover, I feel it is my responsibility to show the real environmental problems that we are facing in this world to the public. I talk about Environmental problems, Nature and Life.

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