Tree Cultures

About Tree Cultures

Recent scientific research into the lives of trees has revealed the existence of a 'wood wide web', or a connected underground network whereby trees communicate with each other and with surrounding life, such as other plants, and mushrooms.

The felling of the iconic Sycamore Gap tree in Northumberland in September 2023 inspired a similar web of connection, communication, and commiseration between people and trees. Alongside these recent scientific discoveries around trees, researchers from the humanities are uncovering trees' impact on human culture, language, and history.

This growing field - now often referred to as the 'arboreal humanities' - seeks to gain a broader understanding of how trees are represented and discussed through a variety of cultural mediums, and in turn, what this reveals about our perception of, connections with, and treatment of our arboreal neighbours, past, present, and future.

Through their ongoing research into the arboreal humanities, Dr Anna Burton and  Dr Amanda Blake Davis, Lecturers in English Literature at the University of Derby, are exploring the literary and cultural history of human-tree relationships, within and beyond the nineteenth century.

As part of this project and their collaborative work on ‘The Literary Arboretum’, Burton and Davis have run public events in collaboration with The Wordsworth Trust in the Lake District and the Royal Botanical Gardens, Kew in London.

‘Tree Cultures at Kew’ brought together researchers and professionals from the arboreal humanities to explore how we understand and regard the value of trees in the cultural imagination. The event showcased emerging literary and environmental history scholarship on trees and tree spaces, and fostered discussions around how the arts and humanities can continue to investigate and communicate arboricultural concerns.

This event culminated in the launch of the Tree Cultures Network, which continues to expand and foster such arboreal connections.

Get involved

To join the Tree Cultures Network, contact treecultures@gmail.com.