Tree of the week: The tallest

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Good morning, and Happy Easter in advance. Today, the third in Pieter Severynen’s inspirational three-part essay about California’s superlative trees -- he’s told us about the oldest, the biggest, and now, the tallest. Enjoy.

The Coast Redwood – Sequoia sempervirens

‘The Coast redwoods thrive in the thickest part of California’s fog belt, where each summer day cool fog moves onto land from the ocean. In this 5- to 45-mile-wide strip of land, stretching 470 miles from Central California north to southern Oregon, the fog condenses on the branches and drips down onto the ground, supplying from 15% to almost half the water needs of these trees. Grouped in cathedral-like groves, each tree hosts many guests: some leaves fall onto branches below, decompose there into ‘canopy soil’, which supports dozens of epiphytic ferns high up in the air, accompanied by beetles, earthworms, millipedes and salamanders; herons, spotted owls, murrelets and other birds love to nest high in the canopy. The trees love company: root systems are extensive but shallow, and once the outer individuals of a cluster of trees have been cut down, strong winds may topple the rest. New trees sprout from cut stumps; many second-growth forests exist.

From a very fast 3-5’ a year initially, the trees gradually slow down, but they just don’t stop. They can attain 2,200 years of age and 23’ diameter at the base. ‘Hyperion’, the currently tallest tree, is located in the Redwood National Park; discovered and measured in 2006, it stands 379.1 ft. tall. It has several neighbors in the 350’ range. (The theoretical physical limit to tree growth is estimated to be 400-425’).

Redwoods grow well in Southern California: the more we approximate their native habitat (moist canyons, nearby stream, enough water), the better they will do. The tree grows into a beautiful symmetrical pyramid, with branches coming horizontally out of the trunk, and then curving up. Inch-long leaves are medium green on top, grayish green below; they grow in one plane, giving the branchlets a feathery look. Thick, fibrous red-brown bark on the trunk is fire resistant. Round brown cones are only 1-1 1/2” long.’

Thanks, Pieter.
E-mail Pieter: plseve@earthlink.net
Comments? Thoughts?
Photo credit: Courtesy of the L.A. County Arboretum