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identity_of_trees_walks [2014-08-19 16:12] – [* Alder, els, l'aulne, alnus] rasaidentity_of_trees_walks [2014-08-28 15:56] – [*Platanus the Court of justice] 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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-Friends: toads, bats +// Try to reach as high as the lork does // 
-Duties: wood is used for fences, bats, staircases, telephone poles + 
-Character: is a pioneer, the first to come back after the ice age, can survive in very austere environments, did not evolve in reproduction system (gymnosperm (naaktzadige) vs seeds & sperm of the flowering plants), fertilization through wind (vs also insects for flowering plants) +The larch stands for survival. It was the first species to migrate back north after Ice Age. Larch can survive in very austere environments, but cannot stand heavy pollution. It creates symbiosis with mushroomlike fungi that inhabit its roots in a friendly way and allow the larch to absorb more minerals. Toads and bats are great friends of the larch. 
-check story on tannine+ 
 +Larch is the only species of its sort that looses its leafs in winter. Unlike other trees and plants, larch did not evolve into the sophisticated reproductive system of the angiosperms. The gemma of the larch is not entirely covered by the leaves of the flower. There is no pollen tube that leads the way trough the cells in order to reach its destination. And as a consequence, there is no double fertilization, which is typical for angiosperms, where one embryo will survive, while the other one will serve as a food stock for the first one.  
 + 
 +Larch produces one of the toughest woods obtained from conifers and is also resistant to woodworm. It is widely used in construction, for railway sleepers, cabinet work, fences, staircases, telephone poles. 
 + 
 +Large quantities of resin are obtained by tapping the trunk. Small holes are bored into the trunk, most resin being obtained from near the centre of the trunk. When properly made, the same borehole can be used for 20 - 30 years. The resin has a wide range of uses including wood preservatives, varnish, medicinal etc. It needs no preparation other than straining through a cloth to remove plant debris etc. The hole is made in the spring and the resin extracted in the autumn. Resin can be extracted from May to October. 
  
 // We thought of birth, when you walk on, think how is death present // // We thought of birth, when you walk on, think how is death present //
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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. 
 +38% 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 // // As a ritual to end this walk and celebrate your membership, find a new place for that something you picked up //
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 ==== Start ==== ==== Start ====
  
-La Bourse/De Beurs at Boulevard Anspach laan in the centre of Brussels; you can reach this place by tram 3 or 4.+Café De Markten at Oude Graanmarkt/Vieux Marché aux Grains in the centre of Brussels; you can reach this place by tram 3 or 4.
  
  
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 ===== A little introduction ===== ===== A little introduction =====
 +During this walk you will meet some of the arboreal persona that survive in the centre of this European, Belgian and Flemish capital. We use the word 'survive' because it is quite unusual to be in a place where trees are such a tiny minority compared to all other species living in a city. The species we find in the city are still anonymous but brave and courageaous trees.
 +We propose you to meet these rare co-citizens and help them out of their anonimity, by becoming friends with them and adopting them as part of your social network, speak about them as you speak about your friends and family, share their stories.
  
-During this walk you will meet some of the arboreal persona that survive in the centre of this European, Belgian and Flemish capital. +Ownership and management of the trees in Brussels' public spaces depends on the ownership of the street they are found in. This can be one of the nineteen Communes, or the Region (and in some cases the Royal Foundation). If it is the Region that owns the tree, it will have been allocated a number and will be part part of a three-year survey and maintenance schedule carried out by the BIM/IBGE. If it is owned by the Commune, the management is done by the Commune’s department for green spaces (if it exists).  
-more humans than trees  +The trees you will meet today are being taken care of by the Department of Green Zones of the City of Brussels. This means that they were probably only randomly taken care of before the completion of the inventory system that started in 2011. Newly planted trees have been registered since 2008.
-regional roads +
-city roads, different boroughs +
-different criteria to plant trees+
  
  
 +Because anything can be created and managed with language and stories. The legal system that rules our worlds is created with those tools. We manage our individual and legal identities every single day. So why would we not be able to create new identities, legally and socially, such an arboral identity for something as lively as a tree? By sharing their stories we make these trees visible as co-citizens, and help to construct their arboreal identity. We have one good reason to do so, our survival. 
 +
 +Trees are our ancestors. Without trees we would never have existed. Trees are the former leaders of this planet and by now, every single human with or without power, knows that we will have to grant them their leadership again, at least partly, if we want to enjoy this planet for some more generations. 
 +People moan about it, are afraid of the consequences it will have on their own lifes. But in fact, granting trees their authority again is not difficult at all. Just learn to reconnect to the energy of the tree, listen to the tree, and you will discover inside your soul all the knowledge, experience, ideas and values that are necessary to melt anxiousness, greediness, hurry, control and all other tools that cut trees out of power.
 +
 +So put in your earplugs, breathe deeply, and slowly put one foot in front of the other. At La Bourse you will meet Prutske, our most legendary co-citizen.
  
-===== Enjoy the walk ! ===== 
  
  
-Walk on the square in front of the hotel. Near the road you'll find a stand with the most famous arboreal persona of Brussels. 
  
  
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 Fig tree, vijgenboom, figuier, Ficus Fig tree, vijgenboom, figuier, Ficus
 +
 +{{:vijgenboom.jpg?200|}}
  
  
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 the twins the twins
  
 +{{:imag1565.jpg?200|}}
 ==== *Wild chestnut ==== ==== *Wild chestnut ====
- + 
 +{{:afgehaald21aprilb_029.jpg?200|}}
  
 Leopold Leopold
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 ==== *Imaginary tree Dansart ==== ==== *Imaginary tree Dansart ====
  
- +{{:afgehaald21aprilb_031.jpg?200|}}
 ==== *Platanus the Court of justice ==== ==== *Platanus the Court of justice ====
  
 +{{:platanen.jpg?200|}}
  
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  • identity_of_trees_walks.txt
  • Last modified: 2014-08-28 20:00
  • by rasa