Page 5 - Forest Trees of Maine

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I am privileged to be able to write a foreword for the centennial edition of The
Forest Trees of Maine, this wonderful gift that the Maine Forest Service has provided
for so long!
Suppose that someone invented a wonderful new machine. It can soak up the
“greenhouse” gas carbon dioxide from the air and breathe out oxygen. It can pump
huge amounts of water from the soil to reduce floods, while holding the soil together
and helping to clean water that flows into streams and ponds. It can produce strong
materials for building and fiber for paper. Pick up a stick of firewood. You hold the
power of sunlight in your hands! This machine can store solar energy until we
release it through fire. If we take care of the land where it grows, then our machine
can be replaced by new machines just like it that will give us more of these
wonderful things. Of course, the “machine” is not new at all—it is the tree—
the tree that is beautiful in the forest and that forms beauty in the form of houses,
furniture and the pages of a child’s book.
Maine’s forest trees are worth knowing. We don’t have as many species as do
some other states, but we have more acres of land covered with trees. Various
sources estimate that we have nearly 96% as much forest as when Maine was first
settled. More than in any other state, this great forest is privately owned, yet is more
accessible to the public than is true in most areas.
Today too many children grow up in a world of television and computer games.
They know little about where the food they eat, the clothing they wear, or the paper
they write on comes from. Using this book to learn to identify trees, and to learn
about trees and forests, can help to keep your children physically and mentally
healthy and can be a great family activity. What fun it can be to explore the woods
and see the diversity of trees! Can you identify one of the earliest to blossom in the
spring—the serviceberry? Did you know that one shrub-like tree (witch hazel)
does not blossom until the fall? Some—like the poplars (aspens), cherries, and
white birch—are fast-growing “pioneers” that thrive in the full sun following a
forest fire or timber harvest. Others, like sugar maple, can take root in deep shade
and grow slowly for hundreds of years.
I hope that you will take the time to enjoy Maine’s trees, and to use the wealth
of information in this book to educate yourselves, your friends, and your children
about this marvelous, renewable resource that is essential to Maine’s quality of life.

—Dr.David Field,Professor Emeritus,School of Forest Resources,University of Maine

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