Phoenix trees are trees that live on after toppling and that can create new trees from branches of the original with their own roots and everything. They are named after the mythical phoenix, a bird that rises from the ashes to regenerate after death, much like Fawkes from Harry Potter.

In phoenix trees I've seen, a large toppled tree hasn't completely separated from its roots—where some roots are broken as the tree fell,  one side of the roots has managed to remain connected. This provides a lifeline for the now horizontal tree.

Remarkably, those branches along the trunk that are now growing upwards can become like trees in their own right and, at times, even put down their own roots. These side trees remain supported by the original great, toppled tree. 

Phoenix trees are not to be confused with nurse logs which are dead fallen trees that provide a great environment for new trees and plants to grow in.

Phoenix trees

How do you remember which are stalactites and stalagmites in a cave? And how to spell them?

The key to getting the whole thing the right way round, in my mind, is to remember that you need to cling tight ("tite") to the ceiling. Once established, you have a letter C in stalactite that fits the cling and ceiling. And stalagmites, with its cheeky G, naturally then is the other one which would grow on the ground. Sorted?

Stalactites, Stalagmites

The simple fact that the start of something, pretty much anything, means we’re more likely to try something new. Be it your birthday, your next house, a new day or a new country, these turn out to be great mental triggers for us to get started.

For more, you could do much worse than listen to Katherine Milkman, an assistant professor at The Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania, on the Freaknomics podcast: When Willpower Isn’t Enough.

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The fresh start effect