The Hidden Life of Trees: What They Feel, How They Communicate—Discoveries from a Secret World

“It appears that nutrient exchange and helping neighbors in times of need is the rule, and this leads to the conclusion that forests are superorganisms with interconnections much like ant colonies.”

Wohlleben compares forests to ant colonies in an effort to illustrate how the health of each tree is determined by their interdependence and cooperation as a community. While scientists previously thought that trees competed with each other for nutrients and preferred to grow alone, the author explains that many trees survive harsh conditions because of their ability to share nutrients with each other through their root or fungal systems when necessary.

“When it comes to some species of insects, trees can accurately identify which bad guys they’re up against. The saliva of each species is different, and trees can match the saliva to the insect. Indeed, the match can be so precise that trees can release pheromones that summon specific beneficial predators.”

Trees have evolved the ability to sense which pests are consuming their leaves, and therefore threatening their health. This gives them the enormous advantage of being able to attract predators which will help the trees by preying on their pests. For example, a tree that is being eaten by caterpillars may use its scent compounds to attract wasps that will lay their larvae inside the caterpillars’ bodies, killing them.

“The fungal connections transmit signals from one tree to the next, helping the trees exchange news about insects, drought, and other dangers. Science has adopted a term first coined by the journal Nature for Dr. Simard’s discovery of the ‘wood wide web’ pervading our forests.”

Like the internet, the “wood wide web” that Wohlleben refers to here can transmit signals and messages. Trees sensitive root tips are capable of sending such messages through the fungal networks that they partner with to be able to link up with other trees’ roots.