How Trees Communicate and Nurture their Young

​Peter Wohlleben, author of The Hidden Life of Trees has revealed that woodlands are like families in the way that they support one another. He explains that the underground network made up of mycelium (fungi) connects the trees and allows them to share nutrients and even information. The older trees support saplings and healthy specimens share their nutrients with sick neighbours. As a forester managing 3000 acres of land, Wohlleben spends plenty of time with trees and his theories are backed up by scientific research such as a Canadian study that showed that Douglas firs can transfer carbon via mycelium, and a 2010 report from South China that demonstrated tomato plants eavesdropping on one another to gather information about pathogens.