Spruce trees are silhouetted against the rising sun at Rainbow Haven beach. Over the years, these trees have endured, despite the salt spray and hurricane force winds. Like many other trees on the Eastern seaboard, evergreens have shown accelerated growth in recent years.
The lighter, brighter green of this year’s growth is especially remarkable. Scientists attribute increased growth to the following three factors:
- Increased carbon dioxide in the atmosphere
- Warmer temperatures
- An extended growing season
All of the above factors point to climate change as the underlying cause.
Though older trees on the landscape are a sign of strength and endurance, new ones are representative of hope. While the strange and severe weather often attributed to climate change is a concern, accelerated tree growth is welcomed.
The forest is alive with new life in its many forms. Below, a witch’s broom growing on a balsam fir, is light yellow-green.
The tree is more than first a seed, then a stem, then a living trunk, and then dead timber. The tree is a slow, enduring force straining to win the sky.
~ Antoine de Saint-Exupéry
For more information on Witches’ Brooms, see Witches’ Brooms in Winter.
For more information on accelerated tree growth see Science Daily.