is used each year by a pair of yellow-bellied 
sapsuckers as a nest site. 
When I need to remove a dead tree that poses 
a hazard, I move it into the woods after cutting 
it. Similarly, when large branches and trees fall 
during storms, I move them off the driveway 
and lawn and into the woods and use some 
for firewood. I also resist cleaning up downed 
branches and trees in the woods. Downed logs 
serve as habitat for a host of animals, replenish 
nutrients and carbon to the soil, act as germina- 
tion sites for new tree seedlings, and store large 
amounts of carbon, often for decades.?® 
Reforestation also requires little to no man- 
agement. Tree growth is the default process in 
the Northeast, and the vegetation will naturally 
self-organize into a forest over time if a land- 
owner simply stops mowing a lawn or field. The 
cessation of mowing will also add to the carbon 
benefits of reforestation by eliminating a sig- 
nificant source of emissions.?” A tall grass layer 
will inhibit tree growth because of competition 
and shading, and therefore shrubs, even thorny 
invasives like multiflora rose (Rosa multiflora}, 
will generally facilitate tree seedling growth 
by reducing the grass layer and protecting the 
seedlings from deer browsing.*? In most cases, 
tree seedlings will eventually grow above the 
shrubs and reduce shade-intolerant shrub spe- 
cies; however, in some instances, a dense shrub 
layer can suppress further tree growth beneath 
it.?! In such cases, selectively removing some 
shrubs can be beneficial. Planting trees can sup- 
plement and speed up natural reforestation, but 
it can be expensive and labor-intensive, and is 
ultimately unnecessary unless a homeowner is 
interested in an immediate screen planting or 
a particular species that does not grow nearby. 
The Final Look 
Ultimately, implementing natural climate 
solutions is an exercise in restraint and may 
challenge a homeowner's sense of aesthetics. 
Indeed, given the choice, many homeowners 
prefer a relatively open, tidy property, with a 
few trees, long views, and unobstructed sun- 
sets. But a property stewarded for natural cli- 
mate solutions can offer a beauty not found 
in more open landscapes. On my property, I 
Backyard 35 
appreciate the delicate beams of light that pass 
through the foliage and columnar tree trunks in 
the early or later parts of a summer day; the bril- 
liant reds, yellows, and oranges that envelop the 
property each autumn; and multitudes of snow- 
or ice-covered branches on a winter day. For six 
months of the year, when the leaves have fallen 
from the deciduous trees, the views lengthen 
and sunsets emerge. Even during the growing 
season, I enjoy surprisingly long views because 
most of the foliage on the large deciduous trees 
is above rather than below the sightlines. 
In the small area where I have begun refor- 
estation, sightlines are reduced and the brushy 
patch of tall grass, young trees, and shrubs look 
unkempt compared to my neighbors’ adjacent, 
close-cropped lawn. Yet this management 
decision comes with other aesthetic rewards: 
insects busily foraging on the tall goldenrods 
that bloom in late summer and the flash of gold- 
finches and white-throated sparrows drawn to 
the seed source in this brushy new habitat. 
In the end, there is a natural beauty that 
accompanies the climate and biodiversity ben- 
efits of leaving more vegetation intact. Faced 
with runaway carbon dioxide levels and a rap- 
idly warming climate, property owners can 
leverage the carbon-absorbing power of trees 
by keeping them standing and growing and by 
allowing an existing field to revert to forest 
by not mowing. In this way, we can play an 
important role in the solution by doing Jess and 
letting nature do more. 
Endnotes: 
' Current carbon dioxide levels are posted on https:// 
www.co2.earth/. The long history of carbon dioxide 
levels on earth are discussed in Lindsey, R. 2020. 
Climate change: Atmospheric carbon dioxide. NOAA 
Climate.gov. Retrieved from https://www.climate. 
gov/news-features/understanding-climate/climate- 
change-atmospheric-carbon-dioxide; and in Kolbert, 
E. 2014. The sixth extinction: An unnatural history. 
New York: Henry Holt and Company. 
i) 
Harris, N.L. 2020. Young forests capture carbon quicker 
than previously thought. World Resources Institute. 
Retrieved from https://www.wri.org/blog/2020/09/ 
carbon-sequestration-natural-forest-regrowth 
Adams, J.M., Faure, H.F.D.L., Faure-Denard, L., 
McGlade, J.M., and Woodward, F.I. 1990. Increases 
in terrestrial carbon storage from the Last Glacial 
Maximum to the present. Nature, 348(6303): 711-714. 
w 
Facing page: Trees continue storing carbon long after they have fallen. Therefore, retaining logs and branches on the 
forest floor provides additional climate benefits and also adds new habitat types. 
