Lab Girl: Epilogue Summary & Analysis

In reality, plants are not like humans—they are different in many significant ways, and the more that Jahren realizes this, the more she knows that humans cannot project their consciousness onto plants. In addition, humans have turned plant life into three things: food, medicine, and wood. This monetization of plant life has wreaked havoc on the ecosystem, and Jahren estimates that in 600 years, humans will have cut down every tree on Earth. Her job, then, is to track this destruction, making sure it does not go unnoticed. On her bad days, she feels helpless, but on her best days, she feels like she can do something to slow the process of global destruction of plant life.

Jahren then directs herself to her readers again, asking that they do one thing for her: plant a tree. And then plant another. And while many people will opt for a fruit tree, like a Bradford pear, they may look nice for the first year and bloom quickly, but they are not strong or hardy, and will not last in the long term. She suggests an oak. She also mentions that many organizations have tree-planting programs and will donate trees to anyone who wants to plant one on their land. And she notes that for the first three years, the tree will need attention, as those are critical years of growth; she also suggests that readers connect the tree to their own lives, marking their children’s growth on the trunk. She also begs, half jokingly, that readers carve Bill’s name into the tree trunk as well.

Finally, Jahren notes that each reader will have his or her own tree. She asks readers to look at their trees, and wonder about them: what does it want, need, wish for? She asks that readers talk to their friends and neighbors about their trees, take photographs, count the leaves, and write it all down. That is what scientists do.