Stories our trees tell: why we must listen before cutting

The author has a small garden with eight kinds of trees, and every tree has a story.

One tree, the Australian bottlebrush, was planted by the author's mother more than 40 years ago.

A car once crashed into it and bent it over, but after many years it began blooming with beautiful red flowers.

Another tree, the curry patta, was a tiny, weak seedling that survived dirt and building rubble falling on it.

Today that little tree has a fine canopy of fresh green leaves used in cooking.

The author once planted a mango seed just for fun, and about five years later it is a strong tree giving its first mangoes.

The garden also has kumquat, lime, and guava trees, and the worm-filled guavas are left for the parakeets.

Trees give shelter and food to birds, insects, squirrels, and monkeys, and they even share nutrients underground through fungal networks.

The author thinks people should listen to the stories of trees and protect them instead of cutting them down.

The essay warns that replacing rainforests with oil palm plantations harms many living creatures.