The Dying of the Trees (Paperback)

~ (Author) "Let me begin with the Catoctin woods, a wonderfully profuse Eastern deciduous forest, with impressively tall oaks and hickories and maples and tulip poplars that..." (more)
Key Phrases: shipmast locust, mixed mesophytic forest, yellow locust, Forest Service, Mount Mitchell, United States (more...)

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

In a thoroughly researched book, Little (Hope for the Land) documents the depressing state of U.S. forests. Individual trees are dying at unprecedented rates, numerous woody species are at risk of extinction and the country's forests are disappearing as intact ecosystems. The devastation stretches across the land and is eerily similar to losses observed in Europe. Although the immediate cause of death varies, Little and the numerous ecologists and foresters whom he interviewed argue convincingly that the best explanation is ultimately the environmental havoc humans have wrought. Acid rain, heavy metal contamination, smog, increased ultraviolet rays streaming through the growing hole in the ozone layer and atrocious management of forests?from clear-cutting to fire suppression?have so weakened individual trees, as well as ecosystems, that once-routine pests may now be responsible for destruction on an unprecedented scale. This book should significantly alter the way we think about our relationship to the natural world.
Copyright 1995 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

From Booklist

Caught as we are in a spell of denial and backlash, we're told that environmental concerns have been greatly exaggerated and we no longer need all those pesky laws and regulations. Not so fast says environmental journalist Little, everything is not okay--trees are dying all over the U.S. Little presents the terrible facts about such calamities as the extinction of the eastern dogwood, the toll acid rain has taken on trees from Vermont to North Carolina, and the human-caused plague killing California's ponderosa pine. He also explains how logging and fire prevention alter the composition of forests and lead to such fatal imbalances as the massive increases in regional populations of the tree-killing gypsy moth. Little traces the origins of all these forms of tree death to 150 years of full-throttle industrialization and then firmly reminds us that trees are essential to life on earth as we hope to live it. Sobering, responsible, and eloquent, this is an important book. Donna Seaman --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

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Product Details

• Paperback: 288 pages
• Publisher: Penguin (Non-Classics) (April 1, 1997)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0140158723
• ISBN-13: 978-0140158724
• Product Dimensions: 7.7 x 5.1 x 0.5 inches
• Shipping Weight: 7.4 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (5 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #660,505 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

23 of 23 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Startling revelation of how ALL forests in America are dying, November 5, 1998

By A Customer

Everyone has heard about "Waldsterben" (dying forest syndrome) in Germany and we all assume that the forests are relatively healthy here. Charles Little shows that this is not the case at all! From coast to coast and border to border, from western forests to New England forests, the forests everywhere are dying due to weakened immune systems (!) and the resulting susceptibility to disease, pollution, bacteria, insects. It's a sad and frightening story.

Everyone should know about this book and the state of the forests. Some of the most interesting points that are raised: almost every acre of old growth that once existed in this country has been cut. The total surviving old-growth would fit in a square 49 miles on each side! It wasn't just in the West that there were big trees: the forests of Michigan were made up of huge trees. Those forests are gone and therein lies the biggest problem: in cutting the original forests so thoroughly we destroyed a balanced eco-system: the state of the trees today is most likely the result of the relentless destructions of one and two hundred years ago. This means there are no easy answers since we can't easily bring back the big trees. The same is true of the suppression of forest fires and the ensuing build-up in undergrowth that results in catastrophic fires: there is just too much undergrowth to even think of manual removal of it as an option.

This is a very sobering book and one that we all need to share with our concerned friends. There may not be any answers now--but we need to know how serious the situation is.

14 of 15 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Vital Information, June 17, 2000

By	Douglas Grubbs (Silver Spring,MD) - See all my reviews

This book has vital information that we need to take into considerstion as we look at today's environmental situation. He is rather pessimistic, understandibly so, and sad about the state of the forests in America let alone the rest of the world. Things look grim and he gives a very good case for seeing it that way. It is strange and kind of eerie that Little gives almost no solution to this problem and that any solution is almost hopeless. Everyone likes to think that they have all the answers a lot of times. Like Rachel Carson having all these nice solutions to the problem of pesticides at the end of her book. Some of them were definately helpful but despite her warnings there is over twice the pesticide use as there was in 1962. I guess Little is telling us to get real. There is no simple answer to these problems and any complex answer is almost never put into action. The corporate world isn't about to do anything for the environment unless it is economically profitable and what's the chance of that happening? Unless we come up with energy which doesn't pollute a lot faster than what people are forcasting soon, we are in trouble. That is basically what he is saying. I think he got a little too upset about the government's denial and corporate denial about the issues. It doesn't seem to help much by getting ourselves all upset by others problems and obstacles in our fight to save the trees. In this regard I thought he should have remained a bit more objective and not let them get to him the way he did.

6 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A heartbreaking and enlightening history., August 4, 2002

By	L. Olmstead "cygnus399" (Clinton Twp, MI United States) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

Little painted vived portraits of the death of America's most precious and valuable forests. This book will bring you to tears as you learn about the plight of the woodlands that we brought on them ourselves. This story is not sugar-coated in the least.