Great Smoky Mountains National Park Podcasts & Blog » Park Ranger http://www.thegreatsmokymountains.org/blog Enjoy the Smokies Courtesy of the Great Smoky Mountains Association! Wed, 25 Jan 2012 14:38:38 +0000 en hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.3 GREAT SMOKY MOUNTAINS NATIONAL PARK Meet the Saviors of the Park’s Hemlock Trees! http://www.thegreatsmokymountains.org/blog/meet-the-saviors-of-the-parks-hemlock-trees/ http://www.thegreatsmokymountains.org/blog/meet-the-saviors-of-the-parks-hemlock-trees/#comments Fri, 05 Sep 2008 15:42:51 +0000 admin http://www.thegreatsmokymountains.org/blog/?p=30 Whether you realize it or not, Eastern Hemlock trees likely had a profound impact on you during your visit to the Smokies:

That shady green forest you drive through between Gatlinburg and Sugarlands Visitor Center? Hemlock trees!

Those gently drooping boughs that arched over you while you dipped your feet into the icy river in Greenbrier? Hemlock trees!

The trees with delicate, tiny needles that you walk among on almost every trail in the Smokies, that you see on almost every hillside… Hemlock trees!

But the quintessential Smokies’ tree is being killed by a non-native insect that’s no bigger than the dot at the end of this sentence. Saving the trees is a complex problem, involves a lot of sweat and effort, and some interesting biology too.

I’ve put together a 3-part film, posted below, to explain what the problem is, and what’s being done to save the trees. Click each photo to play its film.

Part I: The Problem
hemlock intro

Part II: Soil Drenching
soil drenching

Part II: Beetles
beetles

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