Though I’ve always been more of a ‘tree planter’ than a ‘tree cutter,’ I have also found the activities associated with cleaning up the forest floor of debris and limbing trees to be both relaxing and invigorating. It’s an excellent way to exercise in the fresh air.
I don’t use a chainsaw, but I can do quite a bit of cutting with a handsaw or an axe. I *love* knocking down standing dead wood. There’s something satisfying in the thumping sound it makes when it hits the forest floor. I also enjoy raking leaves in the woods, filling in the recessed areas and making the ground as level as possible. Well.. at least I used to… I’ve been thinking a lot lately about why I am driven to clear and clean woods. Am I just trying to leave my mark on a space?
Traditionally, only cleared land in the Northern regions of Europe could be claimed for ownership. If woods were left in their primeval state they were considered a ‘no man’s land.’ When European settlers arrived in the New World, they brought with them the drive and desire to own their own piece of land. The best way to stake their claim was to start cleaning up the woods. When the Scots arrived in Nova Scotia in the early 1800s, they cleared the primeval forests at an unprecedented pace.
I spent much of my childhood in the woods with my grandparents who were both avid forest cleaners. My grandfather removed dead branches and trees from around our ‘camp’ while my grandmother raked up white pine needles and leaves. I too enjoyed taking my little axe into the woods to trim dead branches off the trees. We burned brush while also creating large wood piles for later burning in the wood stove.
But I don’t have a wood stove, so there is little incentive for me to cut wood for heating. Although the sight of trees standing at anything other than a 90 degree angle from the forest floor used to make me think I had to do something about it, I am now more hesitant to take down any that aren’t standing straight. Though I used to be concerned about dry wood being more of a fire hazard, apparently, this is less of a concern once debris begins to decompose on the forest floor. The variety of fungi growing in my backwoods is amazing.
Just the diversity of both flora and fauna that is sustained by forests left in their natural state is enough reason for me to keep my hands off. Recent reading on the value of old growth forests from a variety of sources has convinced me that they’re already pristine in their natural state. Aside from clearing pathways for walking, my time in the woods is probably better spent on activities other than cleaning.
For more information, see:
http://raysweb.net/specialplaces/boreal-articles/oldgrowth.html
Thanks for the comment on my blog. I was pleased when I checked out you blog. My home and studio are in the middle of a nice size piece of forest. I, too, have come to the conclusion that the forest is most beautiful when left in its pristine condition. I have long given up on trying to clear out fallen trees or undergrowth and see real beauty in the natural state it has taken.
Again, thanks!
[…] looks almost as neat and tidy as the one they left behind in the city. (For my role in this, see Confessions of a Woods Cleaner). They may plant some non-native ornamental trees and bushes and regularly weed their […]
Wow a real turn around … it’s hard not to want to tidy up nature .
But you’re teaching us that what looks messy could be someone’s “home” and everything in the woods belongs there. Including the “messy” (in our eyes) forest floor.
Cheers, Sybil
Sybil, it’s a tough habit to break. It’s easier once we accept that the woods are already pristine in their natural state.