Grow and Know - Book Thoughts - When the Forest Breathes by Dr. Suzanne Simard

By Stacey Churchill, April 18, 2026

I was captivated by Dr. Simard’s Finding the Mother Tree, and despite (or maybe because of) the criticism her work has received, I knew I wanted to read her latest.

While Dr. Suzanne Simard’s research in her latest book, When the Forest Breathes, is rooted in the Douglas Firs and Birch of her native British Columbia, her message carries a truth that resonates for me here in Virginia.

Whether you are standing beneath a Douglas Fir in British Columbia or an Oak in Virginia, the trees of the forest aren’t just standing there, they are constantly moving resources. From a native plant perspective, Simard’s work is a bridge between modern ecology and the ancient knowledge we are collectively rediscovering.

In the Pacific Northwest, Simard studies the fungal networks connecting cedars and firs. In Virginia, we can apply that idea to our Eastern Deciduous forests. Our native Hickories, Beech trees, and Maples are not competitors fighting for space; they are a cooperative society. Just as in the West, our Virginia soils are alive with fungi that allow a dying tree to pass its carbon "inheritance" to the saplings waiting in the understory.  

While she works with and around the logging industry she sees the impact of clear cutting and the monoculture that is replanted.  Simard recognizes the fragility of this ecosystem and seeks to provide alternatives with her research. Our goal of restoring native Virginian biodiversity—from the Pawpaws to the Mountain Laurels—isn't just about aesthetics; it’s about rebuilding the infrastructure of the land.

For me the most vital theme in When the Forest Breathes is the acknowledgement that our "new" science is often validation of Indigenous wisdom.  For millennia, the original stewards of the land—including the Monacan, Powhatan, and Cherokee peoples of our region—understood the forest as a web of relations.  They believed that trees are living, sentient relatives capable of communication and intentional behavior. 

Simard invites us to move past the view of plants as "resources" and return to the ancient understanding of plants as kin. I like this shift in perspective - we aren't just landscaping; we are restoring family connections. When we plant a native Oak or a local species of Viburnum, we are helping to repair a broken network. We are allowing the forest to breathe again.

Time to go visit my own backyard oak and whisper that I am bringing it some friends to talk to.