American Forests Forestbytes October 2008

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American Forests is partnering with Timberland in a series of eco-festivals across the country this fall. Events will take place in Boston, New York, Los Angeles and San Francisco. The festivals will coordinate hundreds of volunteers in tree plantings and community clean-ups in parts of each city that are in need. Events at each festival will also include a concert featuring artist Stone Gossard, and a presentation by environmental photographer James Balog. READ MORE

Now Trees Can Prevent Forest Fires
According to a recent press release by the MIT news office, scientists at MIT are well on their way to tapping a new energy source to protect forests from wildfires: the trees themselves. The plan is to actually use energy from the trees to power a network of sensors throughout the forest so that authorities can know of and respond to forest fires shortly after they appear, and hopefully before they become a real threat READ MORE

	Autumn Leaves Explained During autumn, leaves of trees will turn to their natural color as chlorophyll no longer expresses its green tint as it does during the growing season. As the weather gets colder, leaves drop in a process called abscission, so as not to use water important to the tree’s survival during winter. READ MORE

	Citrus Groves Threatened by Disease In Florida, the heart of the domestic citrus industry, trees are falling left and right. They aren’t the victims of development or of storms, but of a disease that threatens to wipe out the citrus groves altogether. Yellow shoot disease blocks the flow of nutrients within a tree, killing it slowly but completely. READ MORE

	Parkway Partners A grantee of American Forests’ Katrina ReLeaf Fund, Parkway Partners’ mission is to improve the quality of life in New Orleans through the maintenance and improvement of public lands. The city of New Orleans lost 50,000 trees on public land as a result of Hurricane Katrina, which amounts to 70 percent of its urban tree canopy. READ MORE


	Slippin' and Slidin'! Heavy rainfall events lead to high levels of soil erosion. This increases sedimentation into freshwater systems and decreases water quality. Vegetation (trees, shrubs, and grasses) is vital for stabilizing soil. Roots of trees are especially effective at holding large chunks of soil, particularly important on steep slopes. Tip: Stabilize your property by planting trees and other vegetation. If you have a river or lake, create a vegetation buffer to guard against sedimentation reaching the water.

	Give the Gift of Trees To give the gift of trees this year, plant trees with American Forests to restore damaged forest ecosystems around the world. Planting trees gives us cleaner air and clearer water. It builds life in our communities and provides animals with homes and nourishment. Let AMERICAN FORESTS plant some trees in the name of the people on your holiday gift list. We’ll send your gift recipient a personalized certificate. Choose to plant trees on the hurricane-damaged areas of the Gulf coast, of wildfire-burned areas of California, or to protect the Mexican habitat of the Monarch butterfly. Visit www.americanforests.org, or call us at 800/545-8733. Let’s make this year a green holiday for all! GIVE A GIFT

British Columbia Study Shows Conservation more Profitable than Logging
In a recent study at Simon Fraser University, researchers have found evidence that may at last convince those final doubters that conservation is the better route. Using computer modeling, the researchers created different scenarios in old-growth forests, and assessed the economic returns of each.READ MORE

American Forests Goes to BFAD
On Saturday September 20th, American Forests took part in Bicycle For A Day. Held in New York City, the event was part of an initiative founded by actor Matthew Modine with an aim to “inspire and inform individuals about simple everyday actions that, done collectively, can make a real difference in the fight against global warming. READ MORE

Spotlight on Pleasantrees
A new partner of American Forests, Pleasantrees is dedicated to improving our nation’s forests. This eco-conscious company is the only greeting card provider in the industry so far to go completely green. READ MORE

Georgia Celebrates Liberty Tree Festival
During the American Revolution, each of the original 13 colonies had a liberty tree or pole: a place to rally for freedom. Starting with an elm in Boston, the practice became widespread, and the trees remained important to the independence movement well into the Revolutionary War. READ MORE

Amazon Suffers Further Deforestation
In early September, Brazil’s National Institute for Space Research revealed that an area of 3,415 square miles of the country’s rainforest was destroyed in the past year. The new figures show a 64% jump in deforestation of the rainforest that makes up 40% of the entire country of Brazil. READ MORE

	Treetures: The Search for Autumn Those Treetures are at it again! In the newest book based on the characters by Judith Blau, the sproutlings of Nutley Grove learn about the changing seasons. Come along with Chip, Petals, Pod, Twigs and the rest of the Treetures gang to find out how a forest gets ready for winter. The book is printed on recycled paper, and a portion of its proceeds will go to American Forests to plant trees around the world. For more information on the Treetures and their books, go to www.treetures.com

Tree or forest questions? Ask American Forests’ expert.
Email treedoc@amfor.org