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My Dear Neighbors,

Robert Frost wisely wrote “good fences make good neighbors.” He was polite about it. More to the point, Hank Williams sang “if you mind your business, you won’t be minding mine,” and I assume that theme resonates broadly in our current “don’t tread on me” mindset. And yet, in spite of those words of caution, I’m going to ask that you please forgive me as I wander over that invisible fence and stick out my neck to talk about the increased pace of mature tree removal throughout the town, and beyond, and ask that you step up to help reverse this trend.

Five years ago our family moved into a neighborhood in the southwest corner of town, drawn by the beauty of the aptly-named “Oak Ridge Lane,” robust with mature trees, cooler feeling air, and a sense of quiet, which is especially remarkable since we sit adjacent to an interstate highway. Having spent a chunk of my life in West Hartford and knowing many of the neighborhoods, this one still stood out.  Fast-forward five years and we still have decent mature tree density, but we are trending toward less, while the sounds from the highway are trending louder. Long time neighbors have told me that the pace of mature tree removal has really increased in the past decade or so. The weather has played a role, to be sure (both storms and drought), but it is the intentional human toll on the canopy that I’m writing about. Maybe this points to a generational disconnect, or possibly a cultural shift toward less connection with the outdoors, or I’m afraid, more reverence for the lawn at the expense of the canopy.

So, will one quickly written note, albeit earnest, reverse this trend? My default mindset toward realism tells me “No.” But I’ll instead embrace the wisdom of my sports idol Wayne Gretzky who said “you miss 100% of the shots you don’t take” and give it a go to plead my case that we are all so much better off protecting, nurturing – and appreciating –  the mature trees that still grace our neighborhoods and public spaces, and fight the urge to treat them as our sole possessions that exist only within our property lines, when in fact their presence ripples throughout our neighborhoods and effects all of us. Science and weather teach us that mature trees cut down in a confined area physically weaken the resiliency of the remaining trees. And from an aesthetic point of view, the area becomes more stark, diminishing the feel of the neighborhood beyond any single piece of private or public property. Sort of like playing Jenga, until we pull out the one that irrevocably changes the place that we all desired to move into in the first place. That is the slippery slope we are rapidly sliding down.

The apparent truth is that tree removal companies (as opposed to the few actual arborists who specialize in tree care and might push back on removing a healthy tree) will take down any tree, no matter how magnificent, no questions asked, and once their trucks head to the next job with your check in their pockets and the remains of a tree that had been standing at least since our parents were kids, your neighborhood is diminished for your lifetime and for all of your neighbors. This recently happened in the Wood Pond area where a group of healthy old growth trees were taken down at the whim of a homeowner, indelibly changing the neighborhood for at least a generation, and starting the domino effect of weakening the surrounding canopy. Sure, it’s legal. But is it right? That’s the question we should start asking ourselves.

Meanwhile, each year now becomes the new hottest year on record. I’ve been hearing about the heat and drought – and flood – challenges for years from the farmers we work with in our small business. And as the heat rises, the fires are spreading, even in once unlikely places like nearby temperate Nova Scotia. Just 10 short years ago a temperature of 142 degrees Fahrenheit was measured in the Lut Desert in Iran – in the shade. Hard to imagine. Closer to home, out in Phoenix, we have family who are pretty much prisoners indoors during their increasingly long hot summers. And on and on it goes. Things are changing fast. We all felt what we felt this summer.

So for now, I do know that for every day I wake up here in my neighborhood to all the birdsong and cool mornings, I am immensely grateful for what the remaining majestic trees do for our air, our air-conditioning bill, our yard, and our neighborhood, and for the kids that bike and play all around here. They’ve got it good. So it just kills me to see even one healthy, or salvageable tree taken down, if it’s at all avoidable. And the more socio-economically challenged the neighborhood, the worse the deforestation problem is, and uncoincidentally, the worse the asthma, air quality, and beauty of the area is. That’s not fair to those kids (or their parents).

While it would be wonderful to see the Town of West Hartford, and more of the private tree “care” companies take a more vested interest in maintaining our mature trees, rather than removing them, it all starts with us.

So here is a quick summary that I hope will inspire more than a few of you to re-consider how you value our remaining mature trees and recognize just how strong their game is, and how there really is no substitute for them. Even a concerted effort to plant young trees and shrubs cannot overcome in any realistic time frame the qualitative, measurable, cooling, air-purifying and CO2 trapping impact – and beauty – of the loss of just one mature tree. Here is a quick ticker on just some of the benefits of preserving them:

Mature Trees:

• have been shown to be a significant boost to property values throughout a neighborhood (for you hard-bitten realists)
• secure/fix the soil and help mitigate flooding
• are a significant noise buffer
• are a significant air purifier and asthma mitigator
• are, in this, the latest Warmest Year on Record, a massive fixer of greenhouse gases
• photosynthesize large amounts of carbon dioxide into oxygen, for things like breathing
• are a provider of lots of shade, and a notable cooler of ambient air.  Just walk into a small grove of healthy large trees on a hot day and you feel the temperature difference.
• are the safest homes for songbirds, and for birds and bats that eat mosquitos, and for raptors that are beautiful to watch glide through the neighborhood (cats take note), and so many more animals. A hummingbird was just literally at my elbow while I wrote this. Surreal. What a neighborhood!
• are beautiful, and were here before we were
• are scientifically shown to make children and adults happier and healthier (mentally and physically)
• are just plain awesome.  Leaves, nuts and branches are just a part of the trade-off.  Seems fair to me.
• Some spouses have been scientifically (?) shown to feel notably relieved when the other spouse shuts off the television, gets off the couch and goes outside and admire the trees (or whatever).

Above all, when it comes to maintaining your trees, find a real, qualified arborist who’s first instinct is not “chop it down.” They’re out there.

“The best time to plant a tree was 20 years ago. The second-best time is now.” – Proverb

Warmly,

Doug Rankin
Oak Ridge Lane
West Hartford