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| | Deepest Roots |
| | A Wild Fig tree at Echo Caves, near Ohrigstad, Mpumalanga, South Africa has roots reaching 400 feet making it the deepest a tree’s roots have penetrated.
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| | The Fastest Growing Tree |
| | In 1974, it was noted that an Albizzia falcata in Sabah, Malaysia had grown 35 feet and 3 inches in 13 months: an approximate of 1.1 inches per day.
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| | The Greatest Girth |
| | In the late 18th century a European Chestnut known as the Tree of the Hundred Horses on Mount Etna in Sicily, in Italy had a circumference of 190 feet. It has since separated into three parts.
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| | The Most Dangerous Tree |
| | The Manchineel Tree of the Caribbean coast and the Florida Everglades is a species that secretes an exceptionally poisonous and acid sap. Upon contact to the skin, a break out of blisters would occur. In the occasions where there is contact to the eye, a person can be blinded, and a bite of its fruit causes blistering and severe pain. This tree has been feared ever since the Spanish explorers came to the Americas in the 16th century.
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| | The Most Massive Tree |
| | The "Lindsey Creek Tree", a Coast Redwood with a minimum trunk volume of 90,000 cubic feet and a minimum total mass of 3630 tons was the most massive known tree until it blew over in a storm in 1905. The most massive living tree is "General Sherman", a giant sequoia found in the Sequoia National Park in California. It is 275 feet tall with a girth of 102 feet and 8 inches.
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| | The Oldest Tree |
| | Found in the Prairie Creek Redwoods State Park in California, the oldest tree recognized is a Redwood known as Eternal God. The tree is believed to be 12,000 years old, although it is argued as being only 7,000 years old, which still makes it the oldest.
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| | The Slowest Growing Tree |
| | A White Cedar located in the Great Lakes area of Canada, has only grown to less than 4 inches tall during its 155 years.
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| | The Tallest Tree |
| | In 1872, an Australian Eucalyptus at Watts River, Victoria in Australia was said to measure to 435 feet, but it is speculated that it probably measured to over 500 feet at some point in its life. The tallest living tree is a Coast Redwood known as the "Mendocino Tree" found in Montgomery State Reserve in California. This tree, which is over 1000 years old, is more than 367 feet and 6 inches tall and still growing.
Odd Facts about TREES: |
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| Landowning Tree |
| | One of the oldest property owners in the city of Athens, GA is a White Oak. A deed granted by Col. William H. Jackson, dating back to 1820, states that the tree own the 64 square feet of land on which it grows in addition to owning itself. The deed was granted in the Colonel’s will to protect the beloved oak. Unfortunately, the original tree blew down during a storm in 1952, but the citizens of Athens planted another, grown from one of the original tree's acorns. |
| | Sleeping Tree |
| | In 1927, a group left Bombay to look into rumors about a tree that lay down at night and went to sleep. As explained by in a publication in the Bombay Chronicle, the tree slowly inclined toward the earth at nightfall, until by midnight it lay completely on the ground. It then began to rise slowly and would stand upright by dawn.
Facts about Certain Species of TREES: |
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The Baobab Tree
Found in Africa, including Madagascar, and northwest Australia, the baobab is thought to be a relic of the flora of Gondwanaland, the super-continent that was once comprised of Africa, Antarctica, Australia and South America. According to African folklore, when the gods gave every animal a tree, the hyena, having arrived late, received the Baobab. He was so disgusted that he planted it upside down. Bristle-Cone Pines
Individual trees in this species are thought to be over 4500 years old, making it a species that is capable of living the longest of any known species.
Douglas Fir
This species has been renamed many times since its discovery. They have also been falsely labeled a spruce, hemlock, and even a pine; they actually are not even true firs. Its new name means "false hemlock." The Douglas Fir comprises over 50% of western forests and produces more timber than any other American species.
Eastern Cottonwoods
They reach to up to thirteen feet its first year and grow to five feet a year, being able to They’re one of the fastest growing trees.
Ginko
This species are the only survivor of an entire plant family. They are the world's oldest living tree species, their origins dating back to the Age of Dinosaurs. They were thought to have been extinct by the western world until 7 preserved Ginko trees were found in an ancient monastery in China. Years later, they were discovered growing wild in the remote valleys of eastern China.
Scotch Pines
These are the most widespread pine in the world.
Sequoias
The giant Sequoias average 10-15 feet in diameter when mature and can grow to heights of 250-300 feet. The largest Sequoia, known as the General Sherman Tree, can be found in Sequoia National Park in California. It has a trunk 30 feet across at the base and has a height of 275 feet. General Sherman, with a volume of 52,500 square feet, is considered the largest living thing in the world.
Witch hazel
The Witch hazel has seed pods that will contract as they dry and shoot out their contents like "bullets" over surprising distances. The forked branches of this shrub or small tree were used as divining rods to detect underground sources of water. In addition, several well preserved mammoth specimens were discovered with Witch hazel leaves in their stomachs, indicating a dependence on the plant for food.
White Mulberry
The leaves of this tree are the primary source of food for silkworms. Therefore, the cultivation of this tree is very widespread throughout many Asian nations due to the importance of silk to their economies.
White Oak
This tree’s wood is often used to make barrels for whiskey and sherry, giving rise to its alternate name, Stave Oak.
Endangered Trees A-Z |
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A African Blackwood, which is also known as Mpingo in Swahili is considered to be the national tree of Tanzania, despite the fact that it is native to 26 African countries, ranging from northern Ethiopia, to the south in Angola, also spreading from Senegal across to Tanzania.
Mpingo not only improves soil fertility, but is also good at maintaining soil stability. Its leaves offer feed for migrating herbivores and for domestic livestock. The mature African Blackwood trees are capable of surviving fires that destroy other vegetation in grasslands. The dark heartwood of Mpingo, is one of the most economically valuable timbers in the world.
B
Bois dentelle is a beautiful tree, endemic to the high cloud forest of Mauritius. Despite the fact that it has no commercial value, only two individuals are left. The most remarkable thing about the species are the flowers – sprays of white bell flowers with fine lacy petals that cover the tree in summer (January –March).
C
The Clanwilliam cedar is a species endemic to the Cederberg Mountains in the Western Cape Province of South Africa. A majestic tree of 6-18 meters in height, the Clanwilliam cedar is a rot-resistant, fragrant and visually beautiful timber that was extensively exploited for building, furniture and later on telegraph poles by European settlers in the eighteenth century.
D
The Dragon Tree is found on the Canary Islands, Cape Verde Islands, Madeira and Morocco. The Guanche people of the Canary Islands used the sap for mummification purposes. In Ancient Rome, Sangre de Drago (Dragon Tree) was used as a colorant and across Europe it has been used as a varnish for iron tools.
According to the Greek myth, "The Eleventh Labor of Hercules: The Apples of the Hespérides", the hundred-headed dragon, Landon, who was said to have been the guardian of the Garden of the Hespérides, was killed by either Hercules or Atlas in order to fulfill Hercules’ task to bring back three golden apples from the garden. As told in the myth, the trees known as 'Dragon Trees’ sprung from Landon's red blood, which flowed out upon the land.
The species is classified as being "Endangered" by Cape Verde, while it is identified as being extinct in the wild on Brava and Santiago where only planted specimens exist today.
H
The Honduras rosewood is found in Belize in Central America and produces timber, which is extremely valued on the world market because of its use in musical instrument production.
Since the Honduras Rosewood supplies hard, heavy, durable and very resonant timber, when struck, it gives off a clear, loud note and making it itself most highly valued in the production of orchestral xylophones and claves. It is also used to make thin covering for fine furniture and cabinets, , knife handles etc.
L
The Loulu is a palm endemic to the northernmost of the Hawaiian Islands chain with the most variety of plant species of any island in Hawaii. There are fewer than 300 individuals of the Loulu left, because of limited regeneration caused by seed predation by rats and pigs as well as competing plants.
M
The Monkey Puzzle is the National Tree of Chile. Nevertheless, there is at least of these trees in every botanical garden in Europe. Its local name is Pehuén and its existence has great historical and social importance to the people living in that area known as the Pehuenche, which means “people of Pehuén”. The seeds of the tree shape an important part of their diet.
The Monkey puzzle is also valued for its unique and natural beauty, which makes it an emblem of a national parks and provinces in both Chile and Argentina. The timber found from the Pehuén has a high mechanical resistance and moderate resistance to fungal decay, hence for its being used for beams in buildings, bridges, roofs, furniture, boat structures, thin covering etc. Monkey puzzle forests have been fast destroyed and degraded due to logging, fire and grazing.
N
Nubian Dragon Tree is found in Djibouti, Saudi Arabia, Somalia, Sudan, and Uganda and was once a widespread and abundant species.
It is one of the few species that can survive wide periods of drought in all parts of its scope, hence making it an important part of the desert ecosystem. The mature fruits of the Nubian Dragon tree are eaten and its sap and fruit may also have medicinal properties.
P
Pau brasil is the national tree of Brazil, making it have strong cultural links to Brazil’s social and economic history. The species is known for the dye extract taken from the heartwood, for which it has been exploited since 1501. Presently, the dye extract and its bark are used locally for medicinal purposes. Research is being carried out to find out whether the bark of this tree can be used as a cure for cancer.
Pau brasil wood is hard and compact, which is almost indestructible and was traditionally used to make hunting tools; commercially, it was harvested for use as a construction timber and in craftwork. It is also highly valued by musical instrument makers and still being exported for the production of bows for stringed instruments.
The various uses acquired from the Pau Brasil have made it target to extensive collection and export of the dyewood, resulting in the loss of large areas of forest and the enslavement of local people and later on the demand for its timber by bow manufacturers has contributed to a great loss.
Q
Quercus hintonii, also known as Encino of Hinton (Hinton's Oak), is endemic to Mexico. Some of the wood’s uses range from locally made tool handles, to beams and fencing poles, and primarily for firewood. Traditionally the wood is used to bake bread known as "las finas", which the distinctive taste is brought on by the smoke.
The species has also been highly affected by grazing, which prevents regeneration as well as the coming up of agriculture, coffee plantation and road construction have all contributed to the decline in the Quercus hintonii populations.
S
St Helena gumwood was selected as St. Helena’s national tree in 1977. The endemic floras of St Helena are not only of great biogeographical significance, but they are also home for equally rare and unusual animal species. The St. Helena gumwood is one of the fourteen most globally endangered and endemic tree species in St Helena. It is threatened by human presence and their use of the timber for firewood and building.
W
The Wollemi pine belongs to the ancient Araucariaceae species, thought to be over 200 million years old. Until 1994, the Wollemi pine was believed to have become extinct about 2 million years ago, but it was rediscovered in a gorge 150 km north-west of Sydney, Australia. There are less than 100 mature trees in the wild, making it one of the rarest species in the world. Because of this rarity, the Wollemi attracts a lot of tourism, which threatens its existence because of the therefore threatened by tourism, for it may be disturbed by human activities, also exposing it to seeds being trampled, compaction of the soil, the introduction of weeds and an increase in the possibility of fires. |
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