Saturday, June 21, 2008

Record Breaking trees


Tallest Trees:
Modern verified measurement with laser rangefinders combined with tape drop measurements made by tree climbers are carried out by the U.S. Eastern Native Tree Society to determine height.
1. Coast Redwood Sequoia sempervirens: 115.55 m (379.1 ft), Redwood National Park, California, United States
2. Coast Douglas-fir Pseudotsuga menziesii: 99.4 m (326.1 ft), Brummit Creek, Coos County, Oregon, United States
3. Australian Mountain-ash Eucalyptus regnans: 97.0 m (318.2 ft), Styx Valley, Tasmania, Australia
4. Sitka Spruce Picea sitchensis: 96.7 m (317.3 ft), Prairie Creek Redwoods State Park, California, United States
5. Giant Sequoia Sequoiadendron giganteum: 94.9 m (311.4 ft), Redwood Mountain Grove, Kings Canyon National Park, California, United States

Largest Trees: The top four species measured so far are:
1. Giant Sequoia Sequoiadendron giganteum: 1,489 m³ (55,040 cu ft), General Sherman
2. Coast Redwood Sequoia sempervirens: 1,045 m³ (36,890 cu ft), Del Norte Titan tree
3. Western Redcedar Thuja plicata: 500 m³ (17,650 cu ft ), Quinault Lake Redcedar
4. Kauri Agathis australis: circa 400 m³ (15,000 cu ft), Tane Mahuta tree (total volume, including branches, 516.7 m³/18,247 cu ft)

Oldest Trees: The oldest trees are determined by growth rings, which can be seen if the tree is cut down or in cores taken from the edge to the center of the tree.
The verified oldest measured ages are:
1. Norway Spruce Picea abies: 9,550 years
2. Great Basin Bristlecone Pine (Methuselah) Pinus longaeva: 4,844 years
3. Alerce Fitzroya cupressoides: 3,622 years
4. Giant Sequoia Sequoiadendron giganteum: 3,266 years
5. Huon-pine Lagarostrobos franklinii: 2,500 years
6. Rocky Mountains Bristlecone Pine Pinus aristata: 2,435 years

Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tree

1 comment:

M. D. Vaden of Oregon said...

After visiting Del Norte Titan, I think that Lost Monarch is actually bigger. Lost Monarch has a double leader, but it appears to be a single organism with the trunk fused sufficiently to be a bigger tree. They are not very far from one another.

Grove of Titans

I'm glad I had a chance to get photos, because there is no certain guarantee that we will ever see redwoods attain this size again - even centuries from now. It's possible, but not certain.

Cheers,

M. D. Vaden of Oregon