Thousands of years ago, rabbis created an annual holiday to
honor trees: Tu B’Shevat, which was celebrated last month. The
rabbis knew what we lose when we sacrifice trees, long before
the we began to pay the price of industrialization. The cedars
of Lebanon, the pines of Rome, the rich forests of Greece – all
were brought down for purposes now forgotten, and the nations
that fell them soon enough fell themselves. As documented in the
book Collapse, by Jared Diamond, civilizations that have allowed
their forests to be destroyed have gone on to perish. It’s
fairly simple, a well-known cycle in history. When trees and
forests are cut down, the land turns barren. Disastrous flash
floods, erosion of top soil, desertification, drought and famine
follow. The rabbis knew this. Tu B’Shevat celebrates the trees,
the care and protection they offer, as well as what they can
give in return for our care, the tangible and tasty fruits of
our mutual efforts. They are our finest ecological producers,
our planet’s life suppor