The Trees in My Forest

Editorial Reviews
From Library Journal
Zoologist Heinrich (A Year in the Maine Woods, LJ 10/1/94) lives in a 300-acre Vermont forest, of which he intended to sell parcels when he bought it 20 years ago. Instead he found his old interest in forestry reawakened, and he renewed his lifelong love affair with trees. Lucky for readers that he did?this book is a gentle reminder of the grand adventure in nature, not just in exotic locales. Heinrich creates detailed portraits of his forest's life, from sex among the trees to ants herding aphids to a history of the majestic white pine, giving readers the full view of life in a healthy forest ecosystem. Heinrich has the ability to engage the reader instantly and to transform common settings into meaningful and educational experiences. Highly recommended for all natural history collections.?Randy Dykhuis, Michigan Lib. Consortium, Lansing
Copyright 1997 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

From The Washington Post
"The Trees In My Forest is an engaging primer on the complex biological economics of the woods themselves...It's a quiet walk in stately woods...In Heinrich's hands, the lives of trees are as noble and as dramatic as the lives of men."

From Kirkus Reviews
This lyrical testament to the stunning complexity of the natural world also documents one man's bid to make a difference on his own little patch of land. Heinrich (One Man's Owl, 1987, etc.) bought 300 acres of logged-over Maine woods in 1975 and set out to restore its ecological diversity. A professor of biology at the University of Vermont, he uses the farm as retreat, classroom, and research lab. Heinrich is a detective in the woods. He infers from the presence of pin cherries the location of old pastures and dates a 19th- century forest fire by examining growth rings and charcoal deposits. His scientific method is wide-ranging and inclusive, drawing on engineering, mathematics, zoology, biochemistry, forestry, and economics, encompassing both micro and macro views. For the former he scrutinizes saplings under a microscope and details the biochemical process by which trees manufacture wood. The big picture spurs musings on the vast interconnectedness of nature as he traces the mind-bogglingly complicated symbiotic relationships among plants, animals, and natural forces like wind and sunlight. Heinrich uses simple sketches to illustrate his explanations of the ingenious design, growth strategies, and reproductive methods employed by trees in their quest for survival. In his ultimate goal of creating a forest, a place of ``habitat complexity'' vastly different from the sterile monocultures planted by paper companies in the name of sustainable forestry, he succeeds admirably. It's a pleasant surprise, then, to learn that in the end Heinrich does well by doing good: Not only is he rewarded with a diverse plant and wildlife population, he also reaps a cash profit from responsible logging. Heinrich tells us more about trees than we'd ever dream of wondering, yet manages to transform the esoterica into a fascinating tribute to nature's superior design. -- Copyright ©1997, Kirkus Associates, LP. All rights reserved. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Review
"The Trees in My Forest is a celebration of observation--an introduction to the mysteries and wonders before us." -- -- Sue Bender, author of
Plain and Simple and Everday Sacred

"These passionate observations of a place 'where the subtle matters and the spectacular distracts' superbly mix memoir and science." -- -- New York Times

"The Trees in My Forest is a celebration of observation--an introduction to the mysteries and wonders before us." -- Sue Bender, author of Plain and Simple and Everday Sacred

"He writes with a graceful lyricism...to attract many general readers of natural history." -- Wall Street Journal

"Heinrich has neatly grafted art to his science giving us a lovely and intimate portrait of the Forest of Adam Hill." -- James Prosek, author of Trout and Joe & Me

"These passionate observations of a place 'where the subtle matters and the spectacular distracts' superbly mix memoir and science." -- New York Times

Product Description
Winner of the
New England Book Award Best
Nonfiction Award
and the Franklin Fairbanks
Award of the Fairbanks Museum

In a book destined to become a classic, biologist and acclaimed nature writer Bernd Heinrich takes readers on an eye-opening journey through the hidden life of a forest.

About the Author
Bernd Heinrich is the author of Mind of the Raven, which won the John Burroughs Medal for Natural History Writing and was a New York Times and Los Angeles Times Notable Book as well as a finalist for the Los Angeles Times Science and Technology Award. He is also the author of Bumblebee Economics, which was nominated for the National Book Award, and The Trees in My Forest, which won a New England Book Award. A professor of biology at the University of Vermont, Heinrich also spends time in the forests of western Maine, where he has done much of his field research and training for ultramarathons.