The Map on the Tree Bark

Three trees stood close together: a beech with smooth grey bark, a pale birch marked with dark lines and an oak with deep grooves. These grooves are called furrows. Puschel held the explorer’s magnifying glass a little way from the oak’s bark.

Puschel“I have found a treasure map! This channel must lead straight to the Giant Acorn.”

Flauschi moved her paw through the air in front of the three trunks without touching them. Their surfaces looked as if each tree had chosen a different coat.

Flauschi“That is the outer bark. It helps protect the tree from drying out and from small injuries.”

Puschel compared the patterns. The beech looked almost smooth. Paper-thin strips peeled naturally from the birch. The old oak wore deep ridges and furrows.

Puschel“Every tree coat is sewn differently. The oak definitely has the most pockets.”

Tiny animals found sheltered places in the grooves. Moss could grow there too. Little flat patches on the bark were lichens. Flauschi explained that bark alone does not always tell us which tree it is. Leaves, fruits and buds help too. Buds are little closed packages that later open into leaves or flowers.

Flauschi“A good tree detective gathers several clues using only her eyes, never by carving a mark.”

Puschel had already lifted a stick like a treasure-map pencil. He quickly returned it to the leaves and traced the bark patterns in the air with his paw instead.

Puschel“I did not find the Giant Acorn, but I can now recognise three tree coats without damaging any of them.”