Taking Root: The Passion of Tree Lovers

Why It Matters

By spotlighting diverse tree‑collecting practices, the piece shows how personal stewardship can drive urban greening, water‑wise agriculture, and cultural restoration, offering a model for climate‑resilient communities.

Key Takeaways

• Arbor Day segment celebrates diverse tree collectors worldwide.
• Salesforce Park hosts 600 rare trees atop San Francisco bus station.
• Cal Sawley grows tropical fruit trees in arid California using minimal water.
• Navajo peach revival honors heritage and counters historic oppression.
• Book “The Tree Collectors” frames planting as hopeful, optimistic act.

Summary

The segment, aired on Arbor Day, explores the growing subculture of “tree collectors” through Amy Stewart’s new illustrated book, “The Tree Collectors.” Correspondent Martha Teichner tours sites from San Francisco’s rooftop park to a desert homestead, highlighting how people nurture trees as personal and communal statements.

In Salesforce Park, landscape architect Adam Greenspan curated more than 600 rare species—monkey puzzle, Wollemi pine, and others—on a five‑acre roof above a bus terminal, turning an urban canopy into a living museum. Meanwhile, California farmer Cal Sawley demonstrates that tropical fruit trees such as jackfruit and mango can thrive in Visalia’s heat with far less water than traditional lawns, showcasing innovative low‑input horticulture.

The narrative pivots to Reagan White Saluci, who is restoring the Navajo peach, a drought‑resistant variety eradicated during the 1860s Long Walk. Her work, supported by Utah State University, links botanical preservation to cultural survival. The book also cites poet W.S. Merwin’s pledge to plant a tree daily, underscoring the symbolic optimism of each planting.

Together, these stories illustrate how tree collecting blends environmental stewardship, urban design, and cultural reclamation, suggesting that individual passion can scale into broader sustainability and heritage initiatives.

Original Description

In her book, "The Tree Collectors," writer and illustrator Amy Stewart recounts stories of people who harbor tree obsessions, from the designers of leafy urban spaces, to those who lovingly cultivate ancient tree species. Correspondent Martha Teichner talks with Stewart, who calls planting a tree "an act of hope"; Kao Saelee, who grows tropical fruit trees at his California home; and plant scientist Reagan Wytsalucy, whose goal is to revive the peach trees of her Navajo ancestors.

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