View allAll Photos Tagged sequoiatrees
The General Sherman is a giant sequoia (Sequoiadendron giganteum) tree located in the Giant Forest of Sequoia National Park in Tulare County, in the U.S. state of California. By volume, it is the largest known living single stem tree on earth.
The General Sherman Tree is neither the tallest known living tree on Earth (that distinction belongs to the Hyperion tree, a Coast redwood), nor is it the widest (both the largest cypress and largest baobab have a greater diameter), nor is it the oldest known living tree on Earth (that distinction belongs to a Great Basin bristlecone pine).
With a height of 83.8 meters (275 ft), a diameter of 7.7 m (25 ft), an estimated bole volume of 1,487 m3 (52,513 cu ft), and an estimated age of 2,300–2,700 years,[4][5][6] it is nevertheless among the tallest, widest and longest-lived of all trees on the planet.
While the General Sherman is the largest currently living tree, it is not the largest tree known to humans. The Crannell Creek Giant, a coast redwood (Sequoia sempervirens) near Trinidad, California, is estimated to have been 15 to 25% larger than the General Sherman tree by volume. The tree was cut down in the mid-1940s. And another larger coast redwood, near 90,000 cu. ft., the Lindsey Creek tree, was reported in a 1905 Humboldt Times Standard article.
There is a tourist in the bottom of the image which gives some scale to the tree
Sequoia vs. Redwood trees. What's the difference?
The tallest species of tree on earth, the Redwoods of the western California coast often go well above 300' tall, with the largest being about 380'. Sequoia trees top out about 100' below that - but make up for it in volume. The are enormous at their bases. So Redwoods are the largest trees on earth by height, but Sequoias are the largest trees on earth by volume.
There are two incredible specimens of Sequoia in Sequoia and King's Canyon National Parks. The largest Sequoia - nicknamed the General Sherman, reaches about 275' in height and has a circumference, at it's base, of 103'. This tree, the General Grant, is shorter by about six feet, with a similar circumference.
From ground level they look about the same, so we went with the Grant photographically. President Calvin Coolidge proclaimed the Grant as the "Nation's Christmas Tree" in 1926. Then, in 1956, President Eisenhower declared the tree a "National Shrine", a memorial to those who died in war. It is the only living object to be so declared.
Now consider yourself a small expert on big trees.
i've pointed this tree out to sequoia every time we pass it, letting him know he shares his name with the biggest tree (saving native american namesake until he's a little older).
now that he talks, he points the tree out to us just as often, usually with an added piece of trivia like "bugs don't like it" or "i tasted it, it tastes yummy!".
copyright © 2009 sean dreilinger
view rachel, sequoia & nick passing by a neighborhood redwood tree - DSC02823 on a black background.
Per Wikipedia:
Sequoiadendron giganteum (also known as the giant sequoia, giant redwood, Sierra redwood or Wellingtonia) is a species of coniferous tree, classified in the family Cupressaceae in the subfamily Sequoioideae.
Giant sequoia specimens are the most massive trees on Earth. They are native to the groves on the western slopes of the Sierra Nevada mountain range of California but have been introduced, planted, and grown around the world.
The giant sequoia is listed as an endangered species by the
International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN), with fewer than 80,000 remaining in its native California.
The tree was introduced to the U.K. in 1853, and by now might have 5,000 trees growing there where it is more commonly known as Wellingtonia after the Duke of Wellington.
The giant sequoia grow to an average height of 164–279 ft with trunk diameters ranging from 20–26 ft.
Record trees have been measured at 311 ft tall. The specimen known to have the greatest diameter at breast height is the General Grant tree at 28.9 ft.
Giant sequoias are also among the oldest living organisms on Earth. The oldest known giant sequoia is 3,200–3,266 years old.
(1 in a multiple picture set)
I found this old water tank amid the orange groves in Prospect Pak in Redlands, CA.
Sequoia National Park in Three Rivers, CA. From our 2012 Great American Road Trip. For more details, visit our blog, The Art of the Road Trip at www.theartoftheroadtrip.com
Sequoia National Park in Three Rivers, CA. From our 2012 Great American Road Trip. For more details, visit our blog, The Art of the Road Trip at www.theartoftheroadtrip.com
(1 in a multiple picture set)
One wonders how many years this orange pickers cart, ladder and crates have stood in this spot, never to be used again.
(1 in a multiple picture set)
I have passed this tree many times without a second glance. This morning we had an unusual, heavy fog that cast a gray aura on everything, but for some reason, this tree seemed to have a light of its own, and a color that had never been apparent to me before.