Well, that depends. Consider Barbara Walters' interview question to Katherine Hepburn: "If you were a tree, what kind would you be?"
So, please forgive my ignorance - when the writers talk about "buffering", does this mean that they are talking about pH?
Hard to tell from the brief article above. pH buffering is one of the most common kinds of buffering, but any process (chemical or otherwise) which limits or softens the effects of something is properly called a buffer, so the paper may have been talking about something other than pH buffering.
Even in computers, message or data storage areas which temporarily store information as it's being passed from one place to another are called buffers, because they prevent data overruns from occurring if the incoming data momentarily arrives faster than it can be accepted by the destination. The memory buffer gives the data a safe place to pile up in a "traffic jam" until the "road" ahead opens up.
Not a dumb question to a fellow tree-hugger.-g-
Seriously, I've planted dozens of trees and have hundreds on my property - if you asked me what kind of tree I'd like to be, I'd have an answer (red maple). And I'd be interested in the answer of anybody who loved trees. Those of you who aren't tree-huggers, I won't be offended if you gag. ;^)