"The Vanishing Groves"

A great essay in Aeon by Ross Andersen on Bristlecone Pines, the oldest living things on Earth.

Photo by Nick Paloukos.

"How Trees Fight (And Enable) Crime"

A fascinating post from Andrew Sullivan.

"All That Time" by May Swenson

All That Time
I saw two trees embracing.
One leaned on the other
as if to throw her down.
But she was the upright one.
Since their twin youth, maybe she
had been pulling him toward her
all that time,

and finally almost uprooted him
He was the thin, dry, insecure one,
the most wind-warped, you could see.
And where their tops tangled
it looked like he was crying
on her shoulder.
On the other hand, maybe he

had been trying to weaken her,
break her, or at least
make her bend
over backwards for him
just a little bit.
And all that time
she was standing up to him

the best she could.
She was the most stubborn,
the straightest one, that’s a fact.
But he had been willing
to change himself–
even if it was for the worse–
all that time.

At the top they looked like one
tree, where they were embracing.
It was plain they’d be
always together.

Too late now to part.
hen the wind blew, you could hear
them rubbing on each other.
--May Swenson

Famous Movie Trees

Vanity Fair has the (completely unexpected) slide show.

"Autumn Trees, Champigny" (Soutine)

Chaim Soutine
"Autumn Trees, Champigny"
1942
Oil on campus
30 3/4 x 23 1/4
Collection Mme. Castaing, Paris

"Tree of Vence" (Soutine)

Chaim Soutine
"Tree of Vence"
1929
Oil on Canvas
32 x 24 1/4
Collection Mrs. Lloyd Bruce Prescott, Rosemont, New Jersey

"Alley of Trees" (Soutine)

Chaim Soutine
"Alley of Trees"
1935
Oil on canvas
Collection Mme. Castaing, Paris