Replanting Our National Forests with Many Types of Evergreen Trees and Deciduous Trees is Desperately Needed

America is home to some of the oldest, tallest and most beautiful trees in the world, like the California state tree – the California Redwood, and the Tennessee state tree – the Tulip Poplar.  From sea to shining sea, awe-inspiring trees fill our national forests. Many species of deciduous trees and various types of evergreen trees thrill us with their imposing majesty, and inspire us with breathtaking beauty.

This summer millions of people will visit our country’s 155 national forests to enjoy the many recreational opportunities those forests provide.  As a renewable resource, trees provide wood for our homes, habitat for wildlife, and clean air for millions of us.

Sadly, record wildfire seasons in recent years have destroyed millions of maples, oaks, willows, birch, cedar, redwoods and most types of evergreen trees.  Many of America’s national forests have suffered extensive tree loss from these fires that can rage out of control for weeks at a time. The National Interagency Fire Center in Boise, Idaho reports that in 2007 alone more that 85,705 fires burned through approximately 9,328,045 acres of wilderness.

Wildfires can be ignited by a variety of occurrences, but lightning and human-related activities are responsible for the majority of fires each year. Things like out-of-control campfires, a discarded burning cigarette, arson, or even equipment use can set off a blaze.

Once a forest fire has started, many factors contribute to its spread and increase in intensity.

Fuel – dead leaves, pine needles, dried grass, branches, and underbrush

Weather – factors include temperature, humidity, precipitation, and wind

Topography – steep slopes can increase fire intensity and provide obstacles for fire fighting

While forest fires can benefit the ecosystem, the massive fires of recent years have done unusual and extreme damage – damage that won’t heal on its own.  In many cases, like the damage done to the California Redwoods, natural re-growth is nearly impossible. Even the natural re-growth of most types of evergreen trees can take many additional years, without a significant replanting effort.

Yet, according to the Arbor Day Foundation, much of the U.S. Forest Service budget has been diverted to simply fighting these massive fires, with little left for replanting.  In fact, the Forest Service has identified a backlog of more than one million acres of America’s national forests that urgently need to be replanted. Each year that number steadily increases.

Fires are not the only threat to these living national treasures. Infestations of insects like the southern pine beetle, have reached epidemic levels in some forests, affecting millions of acres and killing hundreds of thousands of trees. Additionally, diseases like sudden oak death, spruce decline, and white pine blister rust take an annual toll on trees in forests around the country.

Replanting our nation’s forests is critical to the health and quality of the environment – for area residents, for visitors to our national forests, and for all of us. Everyone can take part in protecting and nurturing our national forests back to health because they are not only a national treasure – They’re an important part of our future.

Ways You Can Help