Wet wood doesn’t burn. New York Times: Many California Trees Survived the Wildfires. Here’s Why. “The trees survived because they are filled with water: The roots draw moisture from soil and transport it through branches to its leaves. When the fires erupted in January, trees in Los Angeles had been especially nourished after two previous rainy winters. All that water makes burning a living tree akin to trying to start a campfire with wet logs”, Dr. Jacobsen said. For good measure, we tried a little experiment on this at home (though we can’t exactly condone playing with fire at home, even for science).
Posted: March 22, 2025