Akiva Silver - 19 Mar

PRAISE FORTREES OF POWER

In these times of discouraging news, it is heartening when a book like Trees of Power comes to the fore. Informative, inspirational, and practical, this timeless work will draw the reader in wonder into the selflessly giving world of ten significant tree allies. Inside youll find not only information about the trees, but instructions on how to collect and store seed and propagate trees through techniques such as grafting and cuttings. All for the purpose (to paraphrase the author) of inspiring us to follow our inspirations, not our fears. Not to hope for change, but to create change!

MARK SHEPARD, author of Restoration Agriculture

Trees of Power turned out to be so much more than I expected. The chapters on growing and propagating trees will be of great use to both amateurs and professionals wanting to grow woody plants, written as they are by a commercial nursery owner who really knows his stuff. The ten chapters that cover some of the most useful trees to grow glow with Silvers enthusiasm and knowledge.

MARTIN CRAWFORD, founder, Agroforestry Research Trust

The underlying message of this book is crystal clear: Anyone can grow their own trees. Akiva Silvers writing is refreshingly straightforward and full of encouragement, offering readers a humble vision of connecting our lives more closely with trees. Emphasizing keen observation, a love for the local landscape, and a toolkit of simple propagation and planting skills, Akiva gives readers little to do after reading this book but get on with planting!

STEVE GABRIEL, author of Silvopasture

Trees of Power is an intensely practical book that doesnt read like a textbook. It is a passionate testament to Akiva Silvers arboreal friends and a joyous celebration of how he works with natures terrestrial giants to earn a living. Akiva assumes little existing knowledge. He offers tips to improve your tree identification skills and covers the full range of tree cultivation techniques. There is plenty in here for the experienced orchardist. However, even if you have no intention of rolling up your sleeves and joining him in the orchard but simply love trees, this book is for you, too.

BEN RASKIN, Head of Horticulture, Soil Association

From shoots to nuts, Akiva Silver provides helpful details on every aspect of each of the trees in the book. The lyrical writing makes me, after forty years in California, miss the deciduous forests of Missouri. I hope there will be a sequel, one that covers even more than ten arboreal allies.

ROBERT KOURIK, author of Designing and Maintaining Your Edible Landscape Naturally

Certainly treeculture could have been a word in its own right. Trees are sentient beings charged with regulating the breath of this living planet. Contemplating the ten important species spotlighted in Trees of Power has me excited to keep on planting. Here are trees worthy of every regenerative landscape. Trees that provide us with food, nutrient cycling, fungal havens, and diverse ecosystems that support yet even more life. In the classic Tree Crops , J. Russell Smith spoke about how farming should fit the land, how crop-yielding trees can fill in all those nooks on challenging terrain. Akiva Silvers insights into the essentials of arboreal care provide the how-to guide to successfully establish those tree friends. Take to heart his tree wisdom, and make your special place complete.

MICHAEL PHILLIPS, author of The Holistic Orchard and Mycorrhizal Planet

More than just a how-to book, Trees of Power offers a glimpse into an inspired way of working from someone who has found his calling. Whether you want inspiration or information, this handbook is a simple and profound gem about being a force for positive change. Akiva uses trees as his medium, but the lessons here are timeless and translate into any other context.

BEN FALK, author of The Resilient Farm and Homestead

Trees of Power

Ten Essential Arboreal Allies

Akiva Silver

foreword by Samuel Thayer

Chelsea Green Publishing

White River Junction, Vermont

London, UK

Copyright 2019 by Akiva Silver.

All rights reserved.

Unless otherwise noted, all photographs copyright 2019 by Akiva Silver.

No part of this book may be transmitted or reproduced in any form by any means without permission in writing from the publisher.

Project Manager: Alexander Bullett

Developmental Editor: Benjamin Watson

Copy Editor: Laura Jorstad

Proofreader: Katherine Kiger

Indexer: Shana Milkie

Designer: Melissa Jacobson

Printed in the United States of America.

First printing February, 2019.

10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 119 20 21 22 23

Our Commitment to Green Publishing

Chelsea Green sees publishing as a tool for cultural change and ecological stewardship. We strive to align our book manufacturing practices with our editorial mission and to reduce the impact of our business enterprise in the environment. We print our books and catalogs on chlorine-free recycled paper, using vegetable-based inks whenever possible. This book may cost slightly more because it was printed on paper that contains recycled fiber, and we hope youll agree that its worth it. Chelsea Green is a member of the Green Press Initiative (www.greenpressinitiative.org), a nonprofit coalition of publishers, manufacturers, and authors working to protect the worlds endangered forests and conserve natural resources. Trees of Power was printed on paper supplied by LSC Communications that contains at least 10% postconsumer recycled fiber.

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

Names: Silver, Akiva, author.

Title: Trees of power : ten essential arboreal allies / [Akiva Silver].

Description: White River Junction, Vermont : Chelsea Green Publishing, [2019] | Includes bibliographical references and index.

Identifiers: LCCN 2018049017| ISBN 9781603588416 (pbk.) | ISBN 9781603588423 (ebook)

Subjects: LCSH: Trees. | Trees--Propagation. | Tree planting.

Classification: LCC SD391 .S52 2019 | DDC 634.9--dc23

LC record available at https://lccn.loc.gov/2018049017

Chelsea Green Publishing

85 North Main Street, Suite 120

White River Junction, VT 05001

(802) 295-6300

www.chelseagreen.com

To my children, may you love the Universe as much as it loves you.

CONTENTS

There is a cemetery where I like to gather acorns, high on a sandy hill rising near the cool blue waters of Lake Superior. The grass is so scant on this poor soil that it scarcely needs mowing. There are no houses in sight; surrounded by forest on three sides and an abandoned apple orchard on another, this place is quiet, even for a cemetery. In October the acorns begin to fall from the spreading limbs of the scattered oaks, covering the ground in a layer of gems that almost obscures the mosses and hawkweeds. Bears and deer come nightly to indulge in the bounty, squirrels and jays by daybut most years there are more than enough acorns for my pantry, too.

As I fill my basket, I stop to read the headstones and pay respect to bygone strangers whose familiar surnames live on through local businesses, descendants, and road names. Most were Scandinavian immigrants who came here to clear trees, hoping to eke out a living from field crops on the sterile sandy uplands or the red clay lowlands. The soil had other plans.