Take a Walk at Ivy Creek
White Trail
Ecology in Action
6. At the end of the White Trail stands a large Beech tree with a fence imbedded in the bark (note bottom right.)
How a Tree Grows
Have you ever wondered why a fence fastened to a tree doesn't "grow up" with the tree?
This American beech tree was much smaller when the farmer stapled a new woven wire fence to its side. As each year went by, the tree grew taller by adding cells at the outer tips of its branches and downward at its roots. At the same time, it was growing outward by adding a new layer or ring of wood and bark around the surface of the trunk.
This tree is a good illustration of how trees grow. During its life, this beech has gradually engulfed the wire mesh of the fence until several inches of wood cover the wire. With the passage of time, the exposed wire will rust away. Only the scarred trunk will bear witness to the fence within.
Who do you think might live in that large cavity?
"How a Tree Grows" from Project Learning Tree
Wire fence in beech tree
photo by Dede Smith
