The hidden life of trees: what they feel, how they communicate: discoveries from a secret world

Table of Contents:

1 Friendships
2 The language of trees
3 Social security
4 Love
5 The tree lotter
6 Slowly does it
7 Forest etiquette
8 Tree school
9 United we stand, divided we fall
10 The mysteries of moving water
11 Trees aging gracefully
12 Mighty oak or mighty wimp?
13 Specialists
14 Tree or not tree?
15 In the realm of darkness
16 Carbon dioxide vacuums
17 Woody climate control
18 The forest as water pump
19 Yours or mine?
20 Community housing projects
21 Mother ships of biodiversity
22 Hibernation
23 A sense of time
24 A question of character
25 The sick tree
26 Let there be light
27 Street kids
28 Burnout
29 Destination north!
30 Tough customers
31 Turbulent times
32 Immigrants
33 Healthy forest air
34 Why is the forest green?
35 Set free
36 More than just a community

In The Hidden Life of Trees, Peter Wohlleben shares his deep love of woods and forests and explains the amazing processes of life, death, and regeneration he has observed in the woodland and the amazing scientific mechanisms behind these wonders, of which we are blissfully unaware. Much like human families, tree parents live together with their children, communicate with them, and support them as they grow, sharing nutrients with those who are sick or struggling and creating an ecosystem that mitigates the impact of extremes of heat and cold for the whole group. As a result of such interactions, trees in a family or community are protected and can live to be very old. In contrast, solitary trees, like street kids, have a tough time of it and in most cases die much earlier than those in a group. Drawing on groundbreaking new discoveries, Wohlleben presents the science behind the secret and previously unknown life of trees and their communication abilities; he describes how these discoveries have informed his own practices in the forest around him. As he says, a happy forest is a healthy forest, and he believes that eco-friendly practices not only are economically sustainable but also benefit the health of our planet and the mental and physical health of all who live on Earth.

http://penguin.co.in/book/non-fiction/hidden-life-trees/