Western Redcedar has very straight grain that allows it to split very easily, and after adzes were used to chisel into the heartwood of the tree, a plank could be plucked out in a couple of different ways - either with a splitter stick that was slid down between the plank and the tree until the board was released, or using rope to slowly pry it off. These long planks were used in many different ways, but since only part of the tree was altered here, it’s cambium layer was left intact, allowing this tree to continue to live on and continue to perform is many functions within the forest ecosystem here, slowing rolling layers of bark over this wound to seal it off and compartmentalize it, even hundreds of years later.
It’s pretty incredible to see this evidence of these reciprocal relationships within these ecosystems, recognizing the interdependence of everything on one another, and is a pretty stark juxtaposition to our modern worldview, where forest practices today often clearcut forests to be turned into products, many of which are single use, all so that a few people can turn a profit, destroying the ecological and biological functions of these forests for thousands of years in the process.
In many Indigenous worldviews, these trees aren’t viewed merely as ‘resources’, but family members, part of a rich community of human and non-human peoples working together to survive and thrive, where humans took only what they needed while ensuring everything else here could continue growing and thriving to create more abundance and possibilities in the future…and I think we would all benefit by seeing examples like this, where the wellbeing of the whole is considered above the short-term extractive mindset of a few, in order to create better futures in this world we all share.
#CMT #tree #nature #logging #forest #forestry #indigenous #tribalpark #tlaoquiaht #dobetter #harvest #redcedar #treeoflife