Masting

I was talking with a friend recently about the walnut trees on her property, and she mentioned that all the walnut seeds were giving her a headache. She explained that the walnut seeds had been falling down for three weeks, and that there were still more to go – so she had put the seeds in a pile where the squirrels, turkeys, deer, and other animals could get them. I told her that the shagbark hickory seeds were coming down too, and that for years they hadn’t produced anything, just hickory seed pods and no seeds. Then all of a sudden, it was raining hickory seeds. (The squirrels are working overtime.)

Here is an update on information taken from my blog post published on September 18, 2018.

TREE MAST

I learned a new word a couple of weeks ago: mast. We have some trees that need to be taken down before they fall on some of our other trees, so we’ve been getting estimates for removal. (It’s amazing how costs can vary from one tree serviceman to another!) One of the estimators used the word “masting” during our casual conversation. I kinda got the gist of what he meant as we spoke, but as soon as he left I had to look up the word.

According to Wikipedia, “mast” seeding or “masting” is the phenomenon of mass-seeding carried out by some species of plants, namely trees, during which they all synchronously produce seed following a long interval of little or no production. This masting typically is followed by an explosion of critter populations that eat the fruit.

Hmm. So that explains the explosion of snowy owl visitors from time to time here in Wisconsin.

Synchronous Trees

Scientists have found that certain trees communicate and share resources more readily with each other. The red cedar and maples network is a good example. Same with the hemlock, the Douglas fir, and the beech and oak trees. Trees use the summer solstice to time their reproductive cycles.

Older trees, with their deep roots and experience, may act as central nodes in this network, helping to guide the behavior of the entire system. The root systems of some trees, such as aspens and hornbeams, are interconnected, allowing them to share resources. Trees can communicate with each other through interconnected fungal networks called mycorrhizal networks. These underground networks, made of fungal threads, allow trees to transfer resources such as water, carbon, and nutrients, share chemical defense signals, and even support struggling neighbors.

Have you ever wondered how all the beech or oak trees coordinate their mast years to produce vast quantities of seed simultaneously? Some scientists have concluded it likely has something to do with the weather. Beech and oak trees depend on wind-blown pollen reaching their female flowers. If the same warm, windy conditions reached all the beech and oak trees in the same location, the likelihood of a masting would be good, since they would all have been fertilized at the same time – and there would be correlating production of fruit. Cold, still weather, on the other hand, would have the opposite effect; fertilization could be nil or spotty at the very least.

But that’s kind of a dry way of putting it. Doesn’t saying that they have communicated with each other so they all know now is the time to drop their seeds for a massive fruit drop sound more charming?

The Hidden Life of Trees

In researching this topic, I learned about a book titled The Hidden Life of Trees, by German forester Peter Wohllenben. From the excerpts I’ve read, it is not only an informative book on the life of trees, but also a delightful book to read. I can’t wait to get my copy.

The article “Do Trees Talk to Each Other?” in the Smithsonian Magazine will help you get to know the author Peter Wohllenben and the metaphorical way in which he talks about trees and the ways they communicate. Think Avatar 1 and 2.

The Home page image for this blog post shows shagbark hickory (Carya ovata) and bur oak (Quercus macrocarpa).