How does the anatomy of a tree fit with the prompt shared to inspire our next art quilt?

We relate so closely as human beings to the landscape and trees that are an integral part of our lives. I have been focused on hiking near my home for the past 18 months, and with keen interest, into the natural escarpments and deep, dark forests. I look intensely for hints about our world…see, and study the conifers and the hardwoods, but I am MOST interested in their bark and the deteriorating logs that are host to amazing mushrooms, lichen, and small animals/bugs.

Strange as that may be, their stories are amazing to recount and share in art play. Trees and their decay relate so closely to our own internal human anatomy and survive on the same water and minerals we need to grow and thrive. Learning of their life is a step into my own.

‘A tree normally has three meristematic zones — that is, cells that can divide and reproduce themselves, like our own internal organs. Two of these, the root tips and the buds at the tips of twigs allow the tree to grow lengthwise. The third, located between the bark and the wood, is the vascular cambium zone, often referred to merely as “the cambium.” Its cells divide inward and outward, laying down new wood cells on those already in place and new inner bark cells inside those already existing.’

Few people have ever seen the entire root system of a tree. Since roots are mostly out of sight, most of our ideas about them come from glimpses and assumptions. So, great mythology has grown up — where they are, what they look like, how they work, and how we should manage. There is so much MYTH surrounding the life of our sacred trees and forests.

I plan to explore the myths and discoveries in new artwork for my submissions here.