Do Trees Think?

About this episode

The episode explores whether trees can think and how they communicate through the ecosystem with insights from soil scientist Natalia Mondi.

Do trees think? That’s what our listener Alden wants to know. He has an idea that scientists might study mushroom roots to find out if trees are sending messages. Is that true? And if so, what do trees have to say?!We travel deep into the forest with a young soil scientist named Natalia Mondi from the Mother Tree Project, to find out how and why trees communicate through the ecosystem. Along the way, we’ll discover what trees are asking for, how their “forest buds” help them out, and how Natalia is using this knowledge to restore a forest in Canada, guided by the Kwiakah Nation. Join on Patreon to help us continue to make Tumble: patreon.com/tumblepodcast Shop official Tumble merch: https://tumblepodcast.dashery.com/ Listen to Tumble en Español: https://pod.link/1521514886 Submit a science question: https://www.sciencepodcastforkids.com/contact https://tumble.science/JokeContestant

People in this episode

Guest: Natalia Mondi

Topics covered

• tree communication
• ecosystem
• soil science
• forest restoration
• mushroom roots

Keywords

• trees
• communication
• ecosystem
• soil scientist
• forest restoration
• mushroom roots
• Kwiakah Nation

Mentioned in this episode

Organizations: Mother Tree Project, Kwiakah Nation

More episodes of Tumble Science Podcast for Kids

• How Were Dinosaur Tracks Made? · June 12, 2026 · 23 min
• Could a Peacock and Platypus Be Friends? Mailbag + Joke-ha-thon! · May 29, 2026 · 25 min
• Pluto and the Planetary Pandemonium - Encore · May 15, 2026 · 24 min
• Who Works Harder: Ants or Bees? · May 1, 2026 · 27 min
• Are Animals Ticklish? (Mailbag + New song!) · April 17, 2026 · 21 min
• What's Dark Matter? · March 20, 2026 · 25 min