Dead Tree
Entradas
- Entrada 1
Standing remains of pre-war and early post-war vegetation, predominantly juniper, piñon pine, and cottonwood. Cause of death varies by region: drought stress, soil chemistry shifts, root system collapse following groundwater table changes. The wood cures hard and burns clean once the outer bark is stripped.
- Entrada 2
Wastelanders prefer dead trees to living ones for tool handles and structural beams. The wood has already done its shrinking, traders say, and won't warp in the heat. Settlers near Aniid Kin leave small offerings at the base of certain trees before cutting - a habit older than the wasteland itself, kept alive because no one has reason to stop.
- Entrada 3
A techno-shaman's recorded oral account describes a stand of dead junipers west of Bluff that flowered, briefly, in the spring after the Scar appeared. No seeds were produced. The blossoms were the wrong color for the species. By the following week, the trees were grey again, and have remained so for thirty-seven years.