God Can Make a Tree, But Olaf Ribeiro Can Save Its Life

This article tells the story of Olaf Ribeiro, a plant pathologist who saves old trees one at a time.  Check out the description of the "air spade":

Trees are dying in large numbers in cities all over the country. American Forests, a nonprofit organization in Washington, D.C., that fights for preserving trees in urban areas, says satellite reconnaissance shows metropolitan areas in the eastern U.S. have lost 30% of their tree cover in the past 20 years.

Dr. Ribeiro sees the loss of trees as unnecessary. In fact, he is trying to prove that trees can live forever given the right conditions. As an expert in plant diseases like the fungus that caused the 19th-century Irish Potato Famine, Dr. Ribeiro believes the key to tree longevity is in the dirt.  Trees have evolved in sync with a complex underground world that nourishes them and keeps them healthy. Farmland cultivation, construction, foot traffic and pollution have upset the balance, cutting short trees' lives, argues the energetic, 68-year-old Dr. Ribeiro, who runs a private lab near Seattle that specializes in diagnosing diseases in crops and trees. He believes that if the original microbial activity around the tree could be duplicated, "There's no reason the tree shouldn't go on living."  To be sure, saving individual old trees is criticized by some tree experts, who deride it as "geriatric forestry." Rescues are labor-intensive and expensive, at prices that can run up to $30,000 per tree. Eric Oldar, who works for the California Department of Forestry, worries that too much focus on single trees could detract from the larger problem of cities eating away at the nation's forest canopy.

The team relies heavily on the air spade, a long-handled tube with a half-moon shield connected to an air compressor. The tool, designed to help excavate trees for moving, blasts away the dirt with high-pressure air that leaves roots undamaged.

First, I could go for an air spade.  If anyone wants to send one, please don't hesitate.

Second, even being the tree lover that I am, I have to doubt the value of such intensive care for single trees.  This guy might literally be missing the forest for the trees.  I love trees, but I love forests even more.

Link: God Can Make a Tree, But Olaf Ribeiro Can Save Its Life - WSJ.com.