There is something extraordinary
about stumbling across an old tree. One stares up in awe, as if gazing at the
moon, to the higher ranks of its canopy wondering what the view is like from up
there. Standing before you is a tangible relic from decades past. It is a
living thing that has seen what we can only read about and that will outlive us
all.
These massive giants can be found
all over the world. The oldest is found in one of the youngest countries, the
United States. A Great Basin bristlecone pine (pinus longaeva) found in the White Mountains of California is
around 5,062 years old, the oldest tree in the world. The next oldest, The
Zoroastrian Sarv, a Mediterranean cypress tree, is a national monument in Iran
and about 4,000 years old. Around the same age is the Llangernyw Yew (Taxus
baccata) in north Wales, which took root during the Bronze Age in Britain.
Left: The Zoroastrian Sarv, a Mediterranean cypress tree (4,000 years old) source:http://historicaliran.blogspot.com/2011/05/cypress-of-abarkooh.html
Right: Oldest tree in the world.A Great Basin bristlecone pine (5,062 years old)source: https://www.pinterest.com/pin/307089268317298399/
While these may be the oldest individuals, a clonal colony, a set of trees that are genetically identical and connected by the same root system, is the oldest living organism. In Utah’s Fishlake National forest the Pando or “trembling giant” is a clonal colony of quaking aspen (Populus tremuloides) estimated to be 80,000 to a million years old. The Pando covers 107 acres and has around 47,000 stems that die and renew ever 130 years. It is also 6,000 tons, the heaviest known organism.
The Pando, over 80,000 years old.
source: https://www.tumblr.com/search/the%20trembling%20giant
Giants can even be found in the wilderness of upstate New York. Unlike much of the east coast, with forests only centuries old recovering from logging and European settlement, parts of the Adirondacks are home to the largest stretches of unlogged forest in the northeast. The southern part of the five ponds wilderness area, stretching from 42,000 to 50,000 acres, is the largest stretch of unlogged forest in the northeast. This portion of park is home to a climax forest where longer-living species such as hemlock, white cedar, white oak and red spruce thrive. Other patches of old growth can be found in the western part of the region on high ridges and in wetlands.
While not quite as gargantuan as that of the Redwoods or sequoias to the west, eastern trees can be up to four feet in diameter and reach 90-150 feet. The oldest white oak is 464, red oak, 326, and white pine, 401 years old according to the eastern database for tree age. However, it was only in the last twenty-five years that scientists began cataloging these trees.
Old growth forests give a window into history, a snapshot of what the woods were like when Europeans came over on the Mayflower. But they are also irreplaceable scientific baselines. They show what an untouched forest looks like. And will provide invaluable information essential to our future.
source: https://www.tumblr.com/search/the%20trembling%20giant
Giants can even be found in the wilderness of upstate New York. Unlike much of the east coast, with forests only centuries old recovering from logging and European settlement, parts of the Adirondacks are home to the largest stretches of unlogged forest in the northeast. The southern part of the five ponds wilderness area, stretching from 42,000 to 50,000 acres, is the largest stretch of unlogged forest in the northeast. This portion of park is home to a climax forest where longer-living species such as hemlock, white cedar, white oak and red spruce thrive. Other patches of old growth can be found in the western part of the region on high ridges and in wetlands.
While not quite as gargantuan as that of the Redwoods or sequoias to the west, eastern trees can be up to four feet in diameter and reach 90-150 feet. The oldest white oak is 464, red oak, 326, and white pine, 401 years old according to the eastern database for tree age. However, it was only in the last twenty-five years that scientists began cataloging these trees.
Old growth forests give a window into history, a snapshot of what the woods were like when Europeans came over on the Mayflower. But they are also irreplaceable scientific baselines. They show what an untouched forest looks like. And will provide invaluable information essential to our future.
Sources:
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