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| For thousands of years, trees have provided people with foods, fibers, and medicines. Above all, they have provided people with wood. Prehistoric people used wood to make the first spear, the first boat, and the first wheel. Throughout history, people have used wood to make tools, construct buildings, and create works of art. They have also used it for fuel. Living trees are as valuable to humankind as are tree products because they help conserve natural resources. |
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Pulp mills break down the logs into wood pulp, the main raw material for making paper. The chemical industry uses wood pulp to make alcohol, plastics, and other products.
Food products. People throughout the world eat fruits, nuts, and other tree products. The greatest variety of fruit trees grow in tropical and subtropical regions. These trees produce such fruits as avocados, grapefruits, mangoes, and oranges. A number of these fruits serve as basic foods in some tropical lands. Cooler, temperate regions-such as most of the United States and Europe-have fewer kinds of fruit trees. But several kinds are widely grown. For example, orchards in the United States produce vast amounts of apples, cherries, and peaches. The most important nut tree of warm regions is the coconut palm, which produces coconuts. Nut trees of temperate regions include almonds, pecans, and walnuts. Trees also supply chocolate, coffee, maple syrup, olives, and such spices as cinnamon and cloves.
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Other tree products are used by people in a variety of ways. The rubber tree produces latex, a milky fluid used to make natural rubber. Pine trees produce a sticky resin, used in making turpentine. The bark of oak and some other trees contains a compound called tannic acid. The tanning industry uses this compound to change animal hides into leather. The spongy bark of a type of oak that grows in Mediterranean countries provides cork. Some trees produce substances used as medicines. For example, the bark of the cinchona tree contains quinine, which doctors use to treat malaria and other diseases.
Trees in conservation. Trees help conserve soil and water. In open country, trees act as windbreaks and keep the wind from blowing away topsoil. Their roots prevent soil from being washed away by heavy rains. Tree roots also help store water in the ground. In mountain regions, forests prevent sliding snow from causing avalanches. Forests also provide shelter for wildlife and recreation areas for vacationists. |
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Contributor: Richard H. Waring, Ph.D., Professor Emeritus of Forest Ecology, Oregon State University. |
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