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--- identity_of_trees_walks [2014-08-19 16:12] – [* Alder, els, l'aulne, alnus] rasa
+++ identity_of_trees_walks [2014-08-19 17:51] – [* Beech, beuk, le hètre, fagus sylvatica] rasa
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-Duties: from cradle to cradle: everything can be used, sap is used for wine, honey, sugar and can be drank in spring as a long-life-elixir; the skin was used for writing (2000y ago in teaching of Buddha; the name would be originally from sanskrit 'burgha' which means 'writing on a tree' or from Ghotic 'bairths' which means light), skin can also be used to light a fire in a wet place, or for shoes, coats, canoes; wood is used for furniture; leaves and buttons are used for soap, oil, paint
+// Observe, touch and peel some of its skin, it is harmless and it allows you to start a fire when there is no dry paper available //
-character: Lady of the Woods, symbol of light, new spring, elegance & grace
+The birch is said to be the Lady of the Woods, the tree of the future. It is a pioneer tree that does not demand for high maintenance, but can grow on unfertile and bare soils, just like the larch (see below).
+It symbolizes the idea 'from cradle to cradle': everything of the birch can be used. Its sap is a natural shampoo, and can be a remedy for dysentery and urinary infections. It is also used for wine, honey, sugar and can be drank in spring as a long-life-elixir.
+The skin can be used to light a fire in a wet place, or for shoes, coats, canoes; its wood is used for furniture; leaves and buttons are used for soap, oil, paint. The oil from Birch bark is used for treating skin conditions, and insect repellent.
-// what trees are missing? //
+About 2000 years ago the birch was mentioned in teachings of Buddha; the name 'Birch' would be originally from the Sanskrit word 'burgha' which means 'writing on a tree' and thus it is said that its skin was also used for writing.
+The name would also find its origins in the Ghotic 'bairths', which means light. For Germans and Celts the birch was a holy tree. As the birch is one of the earliest to gain its spring leaves, it is the tree of youth and the new year and its birch rods were used to drive out the spirit of the old year. Birch is symbol of light, new spring, elegance and grace.
+Criminals and psychic patients would be beaten with birch rods to chase bad spirits.
+In Wales, the birch is a tree of love and wreaths of birch are woven as love tokens, its trunk used for the maypole. Like many trees with protective properties, birch boughs over cradles and carriages protect infants against the glamour of the Little People.
+// When you walk on, think of the different ways trees reproduce //
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-dominant
+// Feel the softness of its skin, enjoy its leaves when raining, observe its beauty and grace and in early spring, picture its fluorescent leaves //
-duties: name: in German 'buch' is the same word foor book, wood is used for printing, buttons and young leaves in spring can be eaten in salad
-character: very sensitive to the wind, low spread roots (vs oak), very thin and soft skin, shuts its trunk with leaves like a coat because otherwise it get sunburned and can die; has a beautiful green in spring (fluo), and buttons in the form of writing pens; can be called the tree of elegance & beauty but also of tendencies (that can die easily), will have to migrate notrht due to climate changes, because it needs sun & water at its feet
+Like the Birch, the Beech has a strongly feminine presence, but while birch is a "lady," beech is a queen. Sometimes known as the Mother of the Woods, she stands in stately feminine counterpart to the kingly oak. Her gifts are prosperity, but also wisdom, and she may grant knowledge to those who are aware of her presence. She can help you let go of rigid ideas and move forward in faith and openness.
+Forêt de Soignes is known as the 'beech cathedral', but most of the beeches are very old, too old to provide good wood. The beech forest can be compared to an old people's resthome. It is most probable that the beech will migrate north following the climate changes. Therefore, most beeches are replaced by a diversity of trees, aiming to restore the woods as they existed before the 18th century.
+% of the Forêt de Soignes belongs to the Brussels Region, 56% to Flanders and 6% to Wallonia. Only Brussels has decided to keep part of the 'beech cathedral' as a heritage for the future.
+In German 'buch' is the same word for book and for beech. Indeed, beech wood was used for the letters of the first printing machines and for the illustrative woodcuts. Beech has made the printing revolution possible, And its skin is as thin as paper. In spring the buttons of a beech look like pens you only have to drop in ink so you can save all knowledge for future generations. The buttons and young leaves in spring can also be eaten in salad.
+Beeches tend to grow their leaves in order to cover all air above them and if necessary, they wear them as a coat along their trunks. This is due to the fact that beeches are highly sensitive to sunlight, and if they're exposed, they'll get sunburned. It is great for walkers and joggers and picnickers in rainy Belgium. Find yourself a beech and you'll keep dry.
+Being highly sensitive and very graceful, beech is thus also a very dominant species. Not many plants can stand the shade of the beech. And once there are some beeches present in a forest, the spread very quickly.
+But one tempest or heavy winds can be enough to make the beech stumble. Unlike the oak, beech roots are very superficial. During walks in Forêt de Soignes, you'll encounter frequently a fallen beech with its roots standing straight up as a natural wall to climb.
 // As a ritual to end this walk and celebrate your membership, find a new place for that something you picked up //