Tree

==Mythology==
{{main|Trees in mythology}}
[[File:yggdrasil.jpg|thumb|upright|left|[[Yggdrasil]], the World Ash of [[Norse mythology]]]]

Trees have been venerated since time immemorial. To the ancient [[Celtic tree worship|Celts]], certain trees, especially the [[oak]], [[Fraxinus|ash]] and [[Crataegus|thorn]], held special significance<ref>{{cite web |url=http://wicca.com/celtic/celtic/sactrees.htm |title=Sacred Celtic Trees and Woods |editor=Collins |work=The Celtic Connection |access-date=29 July 2012 |archive-date=11 August 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120811104708/http://wicca.com/celtic/celtic/sactrees.htm |url-status=live }}</ref> as providing fuel, building materials, ornamental objects and weaponry. Other cultures have similarly revered trees, often linking the lives and fortunes of individuals to them or using them as oracles. In [[Greek mythology]], [[dryad]]s were believed to be shy nymphs who inhabited trees.

The Oubangui people of west Africa plant a tree when a child is born. As the tree flourishes, so does the child but if the tree fails to thrive, the health of the child is considered at risk. When it flowers it is time for marriage. Gifts are left at the tree periodically and when the individual dies, their spirit is believed to live on in the tree.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.fao.org/docrep/t9450e/t9450e06.htm |title=The cultural and symbolic importance of forest resources |publisher=Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations |access-date=29 July 2012 |archive-date=1 May 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130501233100/http://www.fao.org/docrep/t9450e/t9450e06.htm |url-status=live }}</ref>

Trees have their roots in the ground and their trunk and branches extended towards the sky. This concept is found in many of the world's religions as a tree which links the underworld and the earth and holds up the heavens. In [[Norse mythology]], [[Yggdrasil]] is a central cosmic tree whose roots and branches extend to various worlds. Various creatures live on it.<ref name="YGGDRASIL">Lindow, John (2001). ''Norse Mythology: A Guide to the Gods, Heroes, Rituals, and Beliefs'', pp. 319–322. Oxford University Press. {{ISBN|0-19-515382-0}}</ref> In India, [[Kalpavriksha]] is a wish-fulfilling tree, one of the nine jewels that emerged from the primitive ocean. Icons are placed beneath it to be worshipped, tree nymphs inhabit the branches and it grants favours to the devout who tie threads round the trunk.<ref>{{cite news |title=The sacred tree |author=Dehejia, Harsha V. |url=http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/life-style/The-sacred-tree/articleshow/10903458.cms |newspaper=The Times of India |date=21 December 2011 |access-date=29 July 2012 |archive-date=23 May 2014 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140523042536/http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/life-style/The-sacred-tree/articleshow/10903458.cms |url-status=live }}</ref> Democracy started in North America when the [[Great Peacemaker]] formed the [[Iroquois|Iroquois Confederacy]], inspiring the warriors of the original five American nations to bury their weapons under the [[Tree of Peace]], an eastern white pine (''[[Pinus strobus]]'').<ref>{{cite web |url=http://cae.ls.wisc.edu/tree-of-peace.htm |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140922020705/http://cae.ls.wisc.edu/tree-of-peace.htm |archive-date=22 September 2014 |title=The Tree of Peace |work=American Indian Student Academic Services |publisher=University of Wisconsin |access-date=29 July 2012 |url-status=dead }}</ref> In the creation story in the Bible, the [[Tree of life (biblical)|tree of life and the knowledge of good and evil]] was planted by God in the [[Garden of Eden]].<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.cs.williams.edu/~lindsey/myths/myths_15.html |title=Hebrew/Christian Creation Myth: Genesis 2, v.8 |work=The Bible |publisher=New International Version |access-date=29 July 2012 |archive-date=18 June 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120618220229/http://www.cs.williams.edu/~lindsey/myths/myths_15.html |url-status=live }}</ref>

[[Sacred grove]]s exist in China, India, Africa and elsewhere. They are places where the deities live and where all the living things are either sacred or are companions of the gods. Folklore lays down the supernatural penalties that will result if desecration takes place for example by the felling of trees. Because of their protected status, sacred groves may be the only relicts of ancient forest and have a biodiversity much greater than the surrounding area.<ref>{{cite journal |author=Laird, Sarah |year=1999 |title=Trees, forests and sacred groves |journal=The Overstory |volume=93 |url=http://www.agroforestry.net/overstory-back-issues/74-overstory-195-trees-forests-and-sacred-groves |access-date=22 October 2016 |archive-date=23 October 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161023052147/http://www.agroforestry.net/overstory-back-issues/74-overstory-195-trees-forests-and-sacred-groves |url-status=live }}</ref> Some Ancient Indian [[tree deity|tree deities]], such as Puliyidaivalaiyamman, the [[Tamil People|Tamil]] deity of the [[tamarind|tamarind tree]], or Kadambariyamman, associated with the [[cadamba tree]], were seen as manifestations of a goddess who offers her blessings by giving fruits in abundance.<ref>{{cite web |title=Cosmic Tree |url=http://www.khandro.net/nature_trees.htm |publisher=Khandro.net |access-date=5 June 2016 |archive-date=23 January 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160123204004/http://www.khandro.net/nature_trees.htm |url-status=live }}</ref>