As Westbrook’s certified arborist, our tree care experts at Lamb’s Tree & Plant Health Care serve hundreds of residents and business owners curious to learn about what makes trees grow. Trunks, branches, and crowns are objects of great interest to many people, and we’ve made growing healthy trees and teaching others about them our mission.
If you are wondering what role water and nutrients play in the growth of new trunks, branches, and leaves, you found the right article.
How Trees Grow
Trees provide property owners with a broad range of short and long-term benefits they will not get with any other outdoor fixture. They dampen vehicle and pedestrian noise from the street while improving air quality by absorbing pollutants and carbon dioxide.
Westbrook and Greater Connecticut have around 58 tree species that follow the same growth pattern. This pattern has four stages that contribute to building habitats for forest animals and growing fellow trees.
Step 1: Seed Dispersal
The first stage of tree growth is seed dispersal.
A mature tree finds ways to spread its seeds to new locations outside the shadow of its crown so its children do not sap soil nutrients and moisture.
Trees disperse seeds in four unique ways:
- Autochory is the most straightforward means of dispersal. A tree, like the horse chestnut, drops conkers directly onto the ground. It later splits open and spreads seeds.
- Allochory utilizes animal agents. Fruit-bearing species usually spread seeds through birds that eat and drop their berries. Oaks use squirrels and jays to disperse seedlings.
- Anemochory uses the wind to spread pollen. Birches and hazels are fond of this method.
- Hydrochory uses waterways to carry floating seeds. Willows and alders use hydrochory to find new planting spots.
Root Establishment
So, what makes trees grow? When a seed finds moist, nutritious soil, it will soak up water and germinate, digging into the ground and unfurling. It will consume large amounts of sunlight and CO2 as its primary tree root deepens and breaks into filaments that later become primary, secondary, and tertiary roots.
Gradual Maturation
During maturation, trees expand their roots, thicken their trunks, and heighten their stems until they grow several meters off the ground. This stage can last from a few weeks in temperate and rainforest climates to a few years in cold and drought-like environments.
Many trees can keep growing for centuries without human intervention.
Eventual Death
Fungus, tree pests, and other natural predators eventually kill most trees. Stressors like high winds, forest fires, and flooding can hasten this process.
Deforestation, warming environmental conditions, and logging are among the most common causes of tree death globally.
Decaying tree tissues work as fertilizers under the forest canopy, supporting the growth of new trees.
Still Curious?
Learn more about what makes trees grow and other in-depth tree and plant health care topics by calling Lamb’s Tree & Plant Health Care at 860-266-0494 for a free consultation with our licensed arborists. We’d be happy to assist you. Stable Trader
