First Stanza :

It takes much time to kill a

tree, Not a simple jab of the
knife Will do it. It has
grown Slowly consuming the
earth, Rising out of it,
feeding Upon its crust,
absorbing Years of sunlight,
air, water, And out of its
leprous hide Sprouting
leaves.
Explanation:

The poet starts the poem by praising the

tree’s strength. A simple jab of knife can’t
kill it, because it has grown slowly for many
years, consuming the earth’s crust that’s
filled with rich nutrients, and the sunlight,
water, air, growing many more leaves.
Second Stanza:

So hack and chop

But this alone won’t do it.
Not so much pain will do it.
The bleeding bark will heal
And from close to the ground
Will rise curled green twigs,
Miniature boughs
Which if unchecked will expand
again
To former size.
Explanation:

In this stanza, the poet suggests hacking and chopping

the tree, and also states that this won’t kill the
tree completely but will only injure the tree and will
give it more pain. WIth time, the tree will start to
regain it’s spirit, and strength and will slowly start
to recover. The injured bark will heal itself and will
start to grow, new leaves and branches will start to
grow and eventually, the tree will fully recover and
will be grown back to its fullest.
Third Stanza:

No, The root is to be pulled out

— Out of the anchoring earth; It
is to be roped, tied, And pulled
out — snapped out On Killing a
Tree Or pulled out entirely,
Out from the earth-cave, And the
strength of the tree exposed The
source, white and wet, The most
sensitive, hidden For years
inside the earth.
Explanation:

In this stanza, The poet points out the right way to

completely kill a tree, which is taking its deep roots
that has been hiding inside the earth out of the soil.
Then he explains, how important roots are for a tree to
grow. Root is the strength of the tree, and it's the
most sensitive part of the tree too. It gives support
to the tree, and gives the tree it’s water. It must be
fully taken out, to kill a tree.
Fourth stanza:

Then the matter Of scorching

and choking In sun and air,
Browning,hardening, Twisting,
withering, And then it is
done.

-GIEVE PATEL
Explanation:

In this stanza, the poet says that after pulling

the root from the soil, it will be exposed to the
hot sun and air. Eventually the root will start to
die due to the heat. And the Root will become brown
and its soft surface will become hard, and
eventually it will lose its shape and and will
start to twist. And slowly it will wither away.
Finally, The tree will completely die.
Poetic devices:
Alliteration:

Alliteration is the repetition of sounds at close intervals. It is used to lend a

lyrical or musical element to the poem.

Examples:

•The bleeding bark will heal.

(Here the poet has repeated ‘ b’ and ‘I’ sounds.)

•The source, white and wet.

(In this line ‘w’ sound is repeated.)
Poetic devices:
Metaphor:

The metaphor is a comparison between two unlike objects, but the word of
comparison ‘like’ or ‘as’ is not used. Instead of stating that one thing is like
another, the poet identifies one with the other.

Examples:

•The bleeding bark

Here the word ‘bleeding’ is a metaphor. The poet compares the sap oozing
out of the bark of a hacked tree trunk to the blood of a human being or a
living creature but does not use the word of comparison.

•leprous hide
Here the uneven, discoloured bark of a tree is compared to the
discoloured and gnarled skin of a person suffering from leprosy. But the
poet does not use ‘like’ or ‘as’.