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If Trees Could Sing - Jerry Douglas & Red Maple
Jerry Douglas talks about the red maple tree. © Used by permission of Jerry Douglas.

Stories in Tennessee

If Trees Could Sing: Jerry Douglas

Jerry Douglas talks about the benefits of trees like the red maple.

Jerry Douglas is widely hailed as the world’s leading player of the dobro (or resonator guitar). Jerry has received fourteen Grammy Awards and has also been named the Country Music Association's "Musician of the Year" three times. An in-demand session musician who has played on more than 2,000 albums, Douglas has largely defined the dobro’s sound in modern music through his work with artists ranging from Emmylou Harris to Elvis Costello and as a member of Alison Krauss’s band, Union Station. Jerry is also known for his own recordings and as a record producer. His work in the band the Earls of Leicester won a 2015 Grammy award for Best Bluegrass Album for their debut album. Jerry and the Earls of Leicester's released their second album, Rattle and Roar, in July 2016. 

More music artists talk about trees . . . 

Jerry Douglas Jerry Douglas talks about the red maple for The Nature Conservancy's "If Trees Could Sing" video series.

Red Maple Facts

  • Scientific name: Acer rubrum
  • Other names: scarlet maple, swamp maple
  • Range: across most of the Eastern U.S.
  • Height: up to 65 feet tall
  • Fruit: winged seed pods, or samaras, whose whirling enables them to travel farther in the wind
  • Fall colors: leaves turn yellow and deep red

You Can Take Care of Trees Like the Red Maple

  • Plant in late fall or winter when the tree is dormant, unless the ground is frozen. 
  • Allow plenty of room for the tree to mature and grow.
  • Water it regularly in its first three years.
  • Spread mulch around the base of the tree. 

Mighty Cool Tree Fact

Did you know... tree roots soak up stormwater, slowing flooding and filtering out water-borne pollutants? Trees filter about 2/3 of U.S. water needs.