spring
The Birth of the Earth │ Plants Under the Trees │ Photosynthesis and the Blue Sky │ Trees, Living Buildings

summer
Dry Alert! │ Trees and Rain │ Forest Bathing │ Breeding │ Cities and Trees

autumn
Leaf color │ Age and disease │ Slow tree growth │ Trees and fungi

winter
Trees and Carbon │ Winter and Various Events │ Intelligence and Memory │ Mutual Aid and Communication

Spring again
Moving Trees │ Supporting Primitive Forests

With a warm gaze toward trees and scientific insight
A beautiful science book that connects humans and nature

This book is a graphic novel and a graphic documentary that conveys the thoughts and insights that the protagonist, Peter, who has learned from nature since childhood, acquires as he becomes a forest ranger and encounters plants, animals, and the forest.
As you follow Peter's narration while appreciating the colorful illustrations, you will encounter scenes where Peter sits on the forest floor, holding a handful of dirt, and contemplates the countless creatures living on Earth, or carefully observes the plants and trees he encounters along the forest path. These scenes convey a wealth of scientific knowledge about the creatures living underground and the internal structure, role, and characteristics of trees that have previously gone unnoticed.


Trees have many aspects that resemble humans.
As Aristotle said, the roots of a tree are the brain of an animal or a human being, so the intellectual structure of a tree is in its roots.
Trees like acacias, when attacked by large herbivores, send out chemical messages made up of tiny particles through their root systems to their neighbors over long distances to warn them of the danger.
Trees like the mimosa have amazing memories, and the beech tree recognizes its own children and protects them from danger.
However, these ecological forests are being devastated by the urban life created by humans.
Let's think about the life of a tree living in the city.
In the city, where people have to live away from their families, trees cannot grow very large.
When city people walk on the ground, the roots of the trees cannot breathe and become paralyzed.
Street trees growing on concrete asphalt must withstand the heat-trapping pavement during the day.
Not to mention the city's smoke and pollutants, and the urine of city dogs that corrode tree bark and kill roots.
“City trees don’t grow, they survive.
For a long time, trees were considered decorations in cities.
“Like a ‘road facility.’”

This book provides a panoramic view of the long history of the Earth, from the birth of trees to the use of forests by humans.
The author says that the history of these trees is rooted in the logic of reasoning accepted especially since Descartes (1596-1650) that 'mechanical animals feel neither pain nor sorrow'.
He speaks for the tree and says that, contrary to Descartes, the bark of a tree also reacts to pain at a slow pace.
It's clear why this book tells the story of trees' cognitive abilities, learning abilities, communication styles, and survival strategies.
If we listen to the voices of the trees and the forest and properly understand their cognitive and sensory abilities, we cannot treat them carelessly.


The Bible for Tree and Nature Lovers
“Peter Wohlleben
Listen to the trees and understand their language.
And he speaks to us on behalf of the tree.”

A tree biologist sprayed pesticide on a 600-year-old tree measuring 2 meters in diameter and 52 meters tall for an experiment.
As a result, a whopping 2,041 animals representing 257 species fell from the tree where they lived.
It is said that in the village of Hwummel, where the author lives, less than a fifth of the population of this animal lives.
Trees are “living buildings” that support many living organisms.
The book says that when a tree falls, its inhabitants fall with it.
While working as a forest ranger, Peter saw forests dying due to cutting down trees and spraying pesticides. He realized that “forests well-managed by humans are ultimately half-dead forests.” He has continued to practice eco-friendly forest management, using horses and hands instead of machines and not using pesticides.
The author's autobiographical story touches on the serious questions that must be asked about how humans will treat trees and forests in the future.


“We see an oak or a beech burning in the fireplace and feel nothing, even though we know that the tree is alive.
And to the trees sacrificed for the reading of this book.
Do you find my words excessive? For the well-being of us all, we must no longer view trees merely as commodities; we must also pay attention to their behavior.”

The level of awareness that nature must be protected has increased compared to the past.
However, there is still a lack of knowledge about the attitude towards trees.
As consumers increasingly reduce their meat consumption and prioritize animal-friendly farming environments that respect animals, they say that trees, like animals, should be treated with respect and prevented from unnecessary suffering.
How is this possible? The author says it depends on individual will and politics.
Although communication between forestry and logging groups isn't always successful, it's improved markedly compared to 20 years ago.
The Swiss Federal Constitution alone mandates that animals, plants, and all living organisms be treated with “respect for the dignity of life,” making it possible to hold people accountable for actions like picking flowers or cutting grass on the side of the road.
‘Welfare and respect’ for plants is an issue that brings about ‘human dignity, and further, human happiness.’
This book provides a wide-ranging insight into the world of trees, allowing anyone, regardless of age or gender, from teenagers to adults, to experience the hidden lives of trees in a vivid and entirely new way.