Black Tupelo tree, very rare
Now here’s a campaign rallying cry you don’t hear too often: “Don’t we have enough trees around here?”
It came from the Republican nominee for a Senate – yes, United States Senate – seat in Georgia named Herschel Walker, a former NFL football player who’s running against incumbent Sen. Raphael G. Warnock.
Sugar maple (Apollo)
For those who’d like to be edified by the entire quote, and so nobody thinks I am distorting his words by not providing context, here it is: “They continue to try to fool you that they are helping you out. But they’re not. Because a lot of money, it’s going to trees. Don’t we have enough trees around here?”
Walker is, of course, attacking the recently passed and signed Inflation Reduction Act, which, despite its name, is the nation’s biggest, most comprehensive effort to combat global warming.
As a New York state resident, I’m pleased that this bill supports NY’s net zero by 2050 emissions goal, which is in line with the Paris agreement to limit global warming to well below 2 degrees and preferably to 1.5 degrees Celsius by mid-century. Twenty-two other states have similar policies in place.
American chestnut
Though, by this time, you don’t find too many people claiming human-caused climate change isn’t a thing, it’s sadly unsurprising that that’s often where the consensus ends. Those on the right side of the political spectrum may admit that global warming is bad, but they’re not really interested in trying to do anything about it, despite the fact that climate change-related disasters have cost the U.S. a total of $788 billion and 4,557 lives over the past five years, according to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.
Lacebark elm
And so, here we are with a guy complaining about trees. He might be interested to know that because of wildfires and extreme weather events, U.S. Forest Service arborists can’t keep up with tree replacement, but have new funding (not from this bill) to try to close the gap. Forests on public lands filter and store water, sequester carbon, provide Indigenous communities with food and timber, and contribute more than $11 billion to the economy via outdoor recreation.
Planting a tree is one of the simple, useful things to do for a number of beneficial outcomes, including human health and insect habitat. Of course, you have to pay attention to the type of trees you’re planting and where you’re putting them.
But no, we do not have enough.
Images in this post are from the University of Wisconsin – Madison Arboretum, visited by garden bloggers in June.
His ignorant statements, and the enablers who know better but cynically put words in his mouth, are maddening. In my opinion on, he isn’t qualified for public office of any kind, let alone our closely divided Senate. If he wins, I think he will just do as he’s told by Mitch McConnell. Senator Raphael Warnock is a much better choice and deserves to be returned to the Senate seat he currently holds.
Wonderful rant! The ignorance throughout the political spectrum is appalling. I have just about lost heart until I read something like this.
Here, here on the “We can never have enough trees!” But, for the other topic – my Daddy taught me to never speak politics.
I agree Jennifer; we get enough politics everywhere else.
I’m moving some 900+ miles from where I currently live. To my delight when I did a search for “trees” along with the new city’s name, it pulled up a nonprofit organization that plants and adopts trees. I wanna’ join! Can’t wait to be there. Unfortunately, you are wrong in one respect. There are still a number of people who adamantly deny climate change. I know them personally. I’m told that California has always had wild fires and water problems, and that this is their own fault and that Texas has always had droughts and heat. Some of this may be true, but it doesn’t account for Europe, China, Australia, and other areas of the US. I never argue with these folks. There is no point.
The spreading poison of political argument has invaded our gardens! Actually it is deeply embedded in the War against Grass Lawns” vs the “natural approach,” whether organic is holier -than- thou or simply misguided naiveté, or The Answer, the relentless destruction of non-native species, etc. And now a Senatorial candidate who has not demonstrated acute intelligence or the perception of subtleties in any area, has decided hat those dreaded socialistic ideas called environmentalism and climate change can be summed up simply: too many trees. Maybe he is thinking that more golf courses would be the ticket, after all his Hero is associated with them. Mr Walker lives in Georgia. Lets hope he isn’t confusing kudzu with trees.
Please. Can’t we please please please have a politics-free zone?
I read somewhere that the more authoritarian the place, the more political everything becomes. ♀️
Perhaps you might try another site?
We are in Climate Crisis, in case you’re unaware.
The health of our trees and all kinds of ag issues, are indeed a very appropriate and critical issue for legislators.
Would you knowingly kill them b/c of *your* politics?
I love trees. Always have. In my small neighborhood of several blocks we lose an average of one tree per month but NOBODY has planted any replacements. I have lost two in my own 1/4 acre lot and there are two young oak trees planted in their places. I have a third in my front yard that has to come down because it is dieing but I already have another oak ready to plant to replace it. I am 66 so I will never see those trees fully mature, but someone will. I am considering asking folks if they would let me plant a tree in their yard. Oh, wait, but then they might have to clean up the leaves! I cringe when I drive by a multi-acre lot that is all boring grass.
One positive note, however. The piedmont area along the east coast was once all cleared for farmland, but the majority of it is now reforested. Countries in Africa and the Middle East are working to restore wastelands by planting millions of trees, as well as native shrubs and grasses. Now if I could just convince my neighbors to plant a single tree.
“Blessed is the one who plants trees under whose shade he will never sit.”
If it’s about global warming, then why is the title Inflation Reduction?
To all those who don’t want “politics.” 1. We at Rant are known for talking about matters that involve politicians and politics. This isn’t the first time – by far – and it won’t be the last. 2. In this case, a politician was talking about trees, so he’s invading our wheelhouse, not vice versa.
Brava Elizabeth! Agree with you 110%.
Perhaps the sadly brain-damaged H Walker might “stick to his knitting,” so to speak. He’s just a McConnell mouthpiece and should never have been encouraged to run for office.
My friends in Georgia tell me he’s getting more confused and embarrassed by the day; most of his statements make no, or very little, sense. It’s truly tragic but the GOP’s cynicism knows no bounds. Nor do they care.
Proudly Blue in tree-hungry Colorado!
Amen to that! So glad you spoke up!
Thanks, Elizabeth, for your rant. Thank goodness we live in New York State.
Too many trees
No!
Too many people!
And too many uneducated people running for political office
with no qualifications or desire to educate themselves to govern
The Amazon is called the lungs of the earth and its trees are being bulldozed to make land for farms that will deplete the soil and then farmers will destroy more trees to make land to farm
Meanwhile fires are destroying trees all across our planet
Not enough trees and not enough intelligent people
Excellent rant, Elizabeth! I also completely agree with both points 1 and 2 in your reply! The current political situation is threatening the environment, our quality of life, our very lives in many cases, and actually endangering democracy! I cannot imagine any venue where it is inappropriate to discuss these issues!
Thanks for that reminder of the state of some political discourse in this country, and since many of these morons are the very people who will be determining the future of this planet, it’s an entirely appropriate topic for Garden Rant!
Excellent rant. If a politician is talking trash about trees, then I applaud you for making your column about this. Sometimes not talking about politics can be a political statement.
If only it was as simple as ‘more trees’.
Carbon offsetting with trees is costing us in Wales (https://www.walesonline.co.uk/news/wales-news/carbon-ofsetting-companies-uk-calculator-22464381)
– and grassland is a better carbon sink. (https://climatechange.ucdavis.edu/climate/news/grasslands-more-reliable-carbon-sink-than-trees).
Anne, I am following links in your comments as well as your posts! Ha, thanks for more rabbit holes to saunter down.
The title of the article on grasslands being a “more reliable carbon sink than trees” could be a bit misleading for people who don’t have a science background or who don’t read carefully. The article, to me, was about grasslands in certain areas being a more reliable carbon sink than trees because trees were prone to wildfires and took longer to come back. It would take more than one article to convince me that a grassy field is a better carbon sink in ALL places. The authors did not say that but if all one read was the first paragraph (as in TLDR syndrome) one would get the idea that grasslands were better. There is no one answer to climate change and the sooner people accept that, the better off we’ll all be. As you said, it’s not that simple. Think global, act local. It sounds trite but it works.
Love my trees. Have more in my city lot than anyone else on the block. I’m boycotting the local homemade ice cream shop because they cut down a medium sized maple because they didn’t want to rake leaves. And I love their ice cream. But…I see a conundrum. Global warming is causing more severe storms. We have been having strong sideways winds. I forget the proper term. Lots of big trees come down. On houses, people, cars, etc. Plant more trees to soak up carbon and more trees to blow down. Will it balance out? Everytime we have trees downed by wind the tree choppers come around and tell people there’s ants in your tree it’s dying it needs to come down before it falls on your house.or your neighbor’s and you get sued.
Thank you for pointing out the obvious….. Trees Matter! I am surprised that some gardeners don’t want to think about what we can do about climate change. This is our planet as much as anyone else’s, and we must do our part to engage in this battle. I am an old Master Gardener from 2007, and we learned in training how important trees are to the environment. I remember that lesson!
How can you have a gardening blog without mentioning climate change, which unfortunately is indeed political and still controversial…
As a boy growing up in Warren, Ohio in the 50’s and 60’s, I remember my father, raised up a holler in Eastern Kentucky, showing his kids and neighbors how important he thought trees were by demonstrating it, not only in planting them, but using them and and tending to them. We never talked about global warming. In fact, not long after, the fear was a coming ice age. But we had trees. And a garden! Tree planting is atavistic. Used to be done naturally. Then we abandoned that as we changed life-styles, began moving more often, and had more important things to do. I had the good fortune of not needing to re-awaken that need. I had had it demonstrated – at our home and neighborhood, and at Dad’s old homestead. There are plenty of operations/foundations now sponsoring the planting of trees, and accomplishing it. I am not as aware of operations sponsoring their use and tending. Little trees are of no benefit except that they become big trees. As a landscape Architect I am only too aware of the future of most trees being planted these days. Herschel Walker may have miss-spoken, yes surely did, when taken out of context. He did not have my father. And he does not have a big climate change agenda. I don’t think all governmental leaders do. My feeling is that tree planting and the threat of climate change are not about the same thing. Anything a tree absorbs out of the atmosphere is released in the composting of leaves and dead-wood. One of the best things we can do with big trees is systematically cut them down before death in the forest, and build with them. Houses and other things that last another 100 years and forestall the off-giving of the carbons in the process. But there need to be trees right behind them in a size capable of doing what they were meant to do in the creation of the forests – sequester carbon, as well as provide beauty, provide sustenance to living things including humans, and provide necessary cooling refreshment and sound. Walker’s intention was in asking if a 90% Green bill should be named (for the sake of public support) something else entirely, which in the end was in and of itself a lie, not anti-inflation. He conflated trees with the climate stabilizing initiative. “Oak” and “Shoots” are great books about the special blessings of trees, many things my father knew growing up.