Sequoias are the tallest trees in the world. Mysterious "tree of life"

There are numerous trees around the world whose extraordinary height has been exaggerated and disputed. However, with the help of the latest measuring instruments, such as the laser range finder, mankind has been able to figure out the height of trees without causing serious deviations.

We bring to your attention the ten tallest trees that have remained to grow in their planting sites, regardless of the changes in the world around them.

Rating of the tallest trees in the world

Mendocino - 112.20 m.

This tree is located in the Montgomery Woods State Natural Preserve, which is a state-owned park located in California, USA. It is one of the tallest trees in the world and Mendiciono was the most tall tree in the world from 1996 to 2000. The type of this tree is sequoia. This tree has a height of almost 112.20 m and an average diameter of 4.19 m.

Scientists conducted research and found that the tree is at least 1000 years old.

Paradox - 112.56 m.

Next on the list of the tallest trees in the world is Paradox, a variety of which was bred by the American breeder and gardener Luther Burbank. "Paradox" is a mixture of black walnut and English walnut. It also belongs to the sequoia tree genus. Paradox is located in California, USA. Its height is 112.56 m and its diameter is 3.90 m.

Rockefeller - 112.60 m.

Another tree on our list, located in Redwood National Park, California, USA. The exact diameter of this giant is unknown, but its height is 112.60 m.

Lauralin - 113.03 m.

Also "Lauralin" refers to trees long-lived. After some research, scientists found out that it lives for almost 1600 years.

Orion - 112.63 m

Another tallest tree on Earth, located in Redwood National Park. "Orion" also refers to the sequoia type. The height of the Orion is 112.63 meters, and the diameter is 4.33 meters.

National Geographic Society - 112.71 m.

Until 1995, the National Geographic Society was the tallest tree on the planet. But then mankind found even bigger giants, and therefore this tree fell to fifth place on our list.

The National Geographic Society is growing in the same Redwood National Park. The height of this giant is 112.71 meters and the diameter is 4.39 meters.

Giant of the stratosphere - 113.7 m.

The fourth tallest tree on planet Earth. Its height is 113.11 meters above ground level, and its diameter is approximately 5.18 m. It was discovered in July 2000 in California, USA. To ensure safety from damaging tourists, the exact location and position of the tree is not disclosed to the public.

Icarus - 113.14 m.

The Icarus tree is located in Redwoods Park, a tributary of Redwood Creek, California, United States of America. The height of this tree is almost 113.14 m, and the diameter is almost 3.78 m. "Icarus" was found in July 2006.

Helios - 114.58 m.

With a height of 114.58 m, "Helios" is the second largest tree on Earth. This tree was at the top of the ranking until August 2006. It is also located in Redwoods Park, a tributary of Redwood Creek, California.

Hyperion - 115.61 m.

Hyperion - tallest tree in the world. It was discovered in August 2006. This sequoia also grows in Redwood Park, but the exact location is hidden from tourists. Scientists have calculated that average age this giant is about 700-900 years old.

The height of the Hyperion is 115.61 m.

The tallest trees in Australia: legends and reality

As early as the 19th century there was no measuring instruments, which would allow to name the exact height of the tree - up to a centimeter. Therefore, people who met giant eucalyptus trees in the Australian forests had to take their word for it. In 1872, an Australian resident reported that he had found a eucalyptus 150 meters high in the forest. But documentary evidence this, alas, was not.

The tallest tree in Australia, which was measured already in the middle of the 20th century, is a copy of the royal eucalyptus, and its height is significantly inferior to 150 meters. It grows on Mount Bau Bau in Queensland and reaches a height of 99.4 meters. The second comparable tree of the same species is in the valley of the river Styx, which flows in Tasmania. Its height is 98.1 meters, and its name is Centurion.

America's Tallest Trees: Sequoia

Sequoias claim to be the absolute leader - these coniferous giants grow mainly on the West Coast of the United States, off the coast Pacific Ocean. Sequoias received a generic name in honor of one of the legendary Indian leaders of the Cherokee tribe.

Moreover, many trees recognized as unique for their big sizes, there are also personal names.

About 150 million years ago, forests made entirely of these giants covered almost the entire American continent. Now their habitat is limited to thirty relatively small groves on the western slope of the Sierra Nevada mountains.

The ten tallest trees in the world grow in one region of the world - California, USA. The exact location of some of them is kept secret, and it is difficult to find their photos on the Web. This was done on purpose - so that curious tourists would not make pilgrimages to the sequoias and let them grow quietly.

Interestingly, in late XIX century, when sequoia groves were given the status national parks, caretakers began to monitor forest fires and prevent their spread. It would seem that this is a good and right thing to do. However, a few years later it turned out that during this time not a single young sequoia tree appeared in the groves.

The solution looked paradoxical, but it turned out to be correct. It turned out that forest fires are necessary in life cycle sequoias. This is one of the few trees in the world that has managed to adapt to fire.

Under the influence high temperature the sequoia cone opens, the seed falls into the ground and gets a chance to germinate. And a forest fire at this time burns out fallen needles and foliage and allows the earth to “breathe”.

Top 10 tallest trees in the world: sequoias

10. Now the tenth tallest tree in the world is the Mendocino tree, which grows in Montgomery Woods, California, USA. Height - 112.20 meters. The barrel volume is 4.19 meters.

9. In ninth place is a sequoia called Paradox, which grows in Rockefeller Forest. Height - 112.56 meters, trunk volume - 3.90 meters.

7. Sequoia named Lauraline grows in the same county of Humboldt. Its height is estimated at 112.62 meters, diameter - 4.54 meters.

6. The sixth place in the world in height is occupied by a sequoia called Orion. It grows in Redwood National Park in San Mateo County. Height - 112, 63 meters, trunk volume - 4.33 meters.

Five tallest trees in the world

5. Sequoia, named after the National Geographic Society (NGS), is considered to be the property of the surroundings of the Redwood Creek. Height - 112.71 meters. The barrel volume is 4.39 meters.

The editors of the site clarifies: it is easy to see that these trees do not differ much in height and are quite densely adjacent in the rating. The unofficial title of the first among the giants passed from one instance to another several times. For a whole year - from 1994 to 1995 - the NGS sequoia was considered the tallest in the world.

4. The giant of the Stratosphere - a sequoia 113.11 meters high - was discovered in the summer of 2000. Then its size was slightly smaller, but the tree still continues to grow. From 2000 to 2010, the size of the Stratospheric Giant grew by seventy centimeters - from 112.34 meters.

3. The top three tallest trees in the world are closed by a sequoia named Icarus. Height - 113.14 meters, trunk volume - 3.78 meters. Icarus got its name for the sun-scorched, reddened dead top.

2. The second tallest tree in the world is called Helios and grows along one of the tributaries of the Redwood Creek. Its height reaches 114.58 meters. For literally two and a half months - from June to August 2006 - Helios was considered the highest in the world. However, an even more imposing tree was soon discovered on the other side of the river.

The tallest tree in the world: Hyperion

1. Now officially the tallest tree in the world is a tree called Hyperion. This is a sequoia that grows on the opposite bank from its fellow, Helios. Hyperion has held the championship in size since August 25, 2006, when it was discovered by two naturalists. The height of Hyperion is 115.61 meters, the girth is 4.84 meters.

The total volume of this tree is 502 cubic meters. It is also known that its age by the standards of the species is quite small - 700-800 years. Sequoias live for four thousand years.

However, Hyperion will no longer grow upwards. The top of Hyperion was damaged by motley woodpeckers, who dug several hollows in the very top of the trunk. The top of the trunk has lost its nourishment, and now Hyperion has to grow only in width.

And the sequoia Helios, which now ranks second in the world ranking, according to environmentalists, grows two inches a year, and in a few years Hyperion may give it the title of the tallest tree in the world.

There are only 30 groves left in the world where sequoias grow. it rare view, and environmentalists are trying to support it - to grow it specially in British Columbia(Canada) and carefully guard nature reserves with sequoias. We invite you to read about endangered species of animals - the populations of the rarest are up to several dozen individuals.
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People have lived next to trees throughout their history. The tree provides shade when it's hot, shelter from lies, wood for a fire, wood for bumga and much more. Therefore, trees have attracted the attention of people for a very long time. And the tallest tree in the world, respectively, attracts the most attention. This is what our post today will be about.

The flora of the Earth impresses with its diversity and magnificence. However, a special place is usually given to trees that have been growing on the planet since ancient times. A huge number of species, shapes, sizes and habitats. All this was the reason for the study of trees with special care. Among them there are real champions, in particular, in height. The tallest tree in the world is just such a record holder. It's time to get to know him better.
Most of the tall champion trees grow in America. First of all, these are sequoias, the location of which is usually kept secret. Among them there are young giants, as well as many centenarians.

Watch this wonderful video from the channel national geographic to appreciate the full power and height of these amazing trees:

The tallest trees in the world, sequoia coniferous trees, are distributed mainly in California, the famous American state. There are several contenders for the first place, but in 2006 the sequoia, called Hyperion, was recognized as the tallest tree in the world, with a height of more than 115 meters and a diameter of about eleven meters. Hyperion is about 800 years old.

Prior to the discovery of Hyperion, the sequoia Helios held the lead. Now this tree has moved to the second position. The following places are occupied by the sequoias Icarus and the Giant of the Stratosphere. It is possible that in the future, ecologists and naturalists will discover taller trees. Then the title of the tallest tree in the world will go to them.

What does the tallest tree in the world look like - a sequoia

Crown of this amazing representative flora has a conical shape. Most branches grow horizontally, sometimes with a slight downward slope. Sequoia bark is very massive with a thickness of up to 30 cm, but at the same time soft and fibrous to the touch. When touched, an unusual sensation is created that the hand is immersed in it. The bark removed from the tree has a red-brown color, and darkens over time. With age appearance sequoia is changing.

Until about a century old, it is a kind of pyramid of dark green color, densely covered with branches from top to bottom. Over time, all Bottom part wood thickens and becomes bare. The leaves of young sequoias are flat and elongated. Their length reaches 25 cm. The leaves of long-lived trees are scaly in the upper part, with arrows below. The cones of these giants are characterized by rather modest sizes - up to 25 cm long.

Sequoias also differ in solid age. For this they are called mammoth trees or "living fossils". Archaeologists have proven that in the pre-glacial period, the number of these trees was very large and dinosaurs walked under them. Their average life span can be up to four thousand years. The record holder in this regard is the sequoia with a lifespan of 4484 years, which was determined by the growth rings of a sawn tree. The main secret of sequoia longevity is a widely branched surface root system, capturing vast areas in search of nutrients and water. In addition, the powerful bark of the tree contains chemical elements that repel pests.

However mammoth tree not the oldest - the life expectancy of some varieties of pines and spruces is even longer. In particular, the age of the Canadian spruce growing in Sweden is approximately 9550 years old. This is the age of the ancient spruce, which was "reborn" in the form of a "clone".

The concept of the big tree in the world includes not only height indicators. The volume of the trunk and branches is also taken into account. According to these parameters largest trees are redwoods, growing mainly in America. In particular, there is a similar giant in the California National Park and is called "General Sherman". This general is distinguished by a height of 84 meters and an age of about 2200 years. Meanwhile, the tree continues to grow.

Sequoias are the undisputed champions in size. However, other majestic plants are worthy of attention.
In the dense forests of Tasmania, the giant eucalyptus "Centurion" grows. His height is 101 meters, he is the champion among deciduous trees. Experts have established its approximate age - about 400 years. In the Guinness Book of Records, this eucalyptus is listed as the tallest tree in the world, but already from flowering trees.

Another champion, but already in terms of the thickness of the trunk, is the baobab (Adansonia digitata). The diameter of the trunk of a thirty-meter baobab can reach 9 meters. Only the European chestnut can compete with it. Since the nineteenth century, a representative of this species has been known, the trunk diameter of which is an incredible 20 meters.

The tallest trees in Russia

First of all, these are Siberian firs, growing up to a hundred meters. Their straight trunk is covered with a dense layer of branches growing directly from the ground. Also high altitudes up to 80 meters reaches the Nordmann fir. This tree is found in the Krasnodar Territory.

Norway spruce will grow up to sixty meters. There are giants among the forest beeches.
One of the tallest and most beautiful evergreen conifers is considered Siberian cedar reaching forty meters.
There is also a famous sequoia in our country - in Nikitsky botanical garden near Yalta. It lags behind the California relatives and has a height of about thirty meters.

The tallest tree in the world - interesting facts

Most giant trees Sequoia lands - have a unique ability to purify the air from carbon dioxide. Interestingly, this property is much more effective than other plants. Owners of sequoia plantations, for refusing to cut them down - for lost profits receive a certain compensation, which is called a carbon credit.
Fire is not fatal to sequoia, whose bark does not ignite. Fire, on the contrary, prepares the nearby soil for the germination of young shoots, clearing it of other plants. Also, under the influence of heat, the cones quickly open, the seeds of which fall into the ground.
Sequoia can grow well in almost any conditions, but the process will be very slow and its height will not reach natural environment a habitat.

As you can see, the tallest tree in the world also holds the record for other parameters. Well, we can only be glad that humanity has such wonderful neighbors in the plant world. Stay tuned and find out more!

The flora of our planet is very diverse and rich. It has hundreds of thousands of species of living organisms. The most common plants in our world are gymnosperms and angiosperms.

Some of the plants are truly amazing in size, both in height and in thickness. Their lifespan is hundreds of years and one can only imagine what they have seen in their lifetime. We have prepared for you a list that includes the largest and tallest trees in the world.

All ten of the largest and tallest trees grow in the United States, and they all belong to a single species - the evergreen sequoia.

These trees belong to coniferous trees and are relatives of the common cypress. They grow in one place on the planet - on the Pacific coast of the United States. Sequoias are so amazing and huge that each of the record trees has its own name.

1: Hyperion

The height of this tree is 115.61 meters. It was discovered and measured in 2006, it turned out that this is the most tall plant on the planet. This sequoia also grows in Redwood Park, where exactly it grows is hidden from tourists. It is believed that the age of this giant is 700-800 years.

2: Helios

In second place is another giant, which belongs to the same species. The height of this sequoia is 114.58 meters, and the trunk has a diameter of 4.96 meters. Until 2006, Helios was considered the highest on the planet, but then a tree was found that is higher than it and it is it that is at the first number on our list. Helios is located in Redwood Park, California.

3: Icarus

This is another American sequoia that grows in the same area. The height of this tree is 113.14 meters, and the diameter of the trunk is 3.78 meters. This tree was discovered only in 2006. Its location is hidden from tourists.

4: Stratosphere Giant

Fourth place is occupied by the sequoia, which has a very appropriate name - the Giant of the Stratosphere. The height of this tree is 113.11 meters, and the diameter of the trunk is 5.18 meters. This plant is located in Humboldt Park.

5: National Geographic Society

In fifth place is the sequoia, which has quite long name: National Geographic Society. It is native to Redwood Creek. Until 1995, this sequoia was considered the tallest tree in the world. But in this moment even larger giants have been found.

The height of this tree is 112.71 meters, and the diameter of the trunk is 4.39 meters.

6: Orion

This is an evergreen Sequoia (Sequoia sempervirene), which grows in Redwood Park, all in the same California. The height of the tree is 112.63 meters and the diameter of the trunk is 4.33 meters.

7: Lauralyn

8: Rockefeller

This is also a sequoia, which is located in the Humboldt National Park in the USA. Its height is 112.6 meters, and the exact diameter of the trunk, unfortunately, is unknown.

9: Paradox

Sequoia evergreen (Sequoia sempervirene). This plant is also located on west coast USA, California. The height of this tree is 112.56 meters and the diameter is 3.9 meters.

10: Mendocino Tree

Sequoia evergreen (Sequoia sempervirene). This tree is located in California, USA.

The height of this giant is 112.20 meters, and the diameter is 4.19 meters. The exact location of this tree is hidden so that tourists do not harm it.

11: Baobab

We have described to you the tallest trees in the world, in this regard, the sequoia has no competitors. But, if we talk about plant giants, then it is worth mentioning the baobab. This is the thickest and most massive tree in the world. Baobabs grow in Africa, their height is small - about 18-25 meters, but the diameter of the trunk can reach 10 meters. It is very simple to explain such a strange appearance of this tree. The baobab has very porous wood and accumulates water in it during the rainy season. Then uses this stock during a drought. This tree has a huge crown, its diameter can reach forty meters. The wood of the tree is very loose and easily destroyed by fungal diseases. Huge hollows are obtained, which Africans use for their own purposes.

12: Banyan

We, the inhabitants of Eurasia, are unlikely to have been able to see trees more than 40-50 meters high in our native spaces. And if you managed to see a 60-meter pine tree, then it simply took your breath away from the grandeur. Now imagine that the height of the tallest tree in the world is over 115 meters! This is the height of a 40-story building or the height of three ordinary pine trees!

So, the topic of our article today is the tallest trees in the world.

The tallest tree in the world: sequoia

Oddly enough, the TOP 10 giant trees grow in one, relatively small area - along the Pacific coast in California. These are giant, belonging to the cypress family - Sequoia semprevirens.

In addition to size, the age of the sequoia is also impressive. So, based on the results of excavations, these plants already existed 208-144 million years ago, that is, in Jurassic period. But if then sequoias were widespread in the northern hemisphere, now they huddle in a small limited area with a length of 450 km - from the Klamath Mountains (Southern Oregon) to the end of the Californian Sierra Nevada. The places where sequoias grow are part of the reserves: biosphere reserve and Sequoia National Park, as well as Humboldt-Redvus National Park. The oldest sequoias in existence today are 3,500 years old.

Before we know what is remarkable tallest tree in the world let's stop at biological characteristics sequoias. The tallest trees on earth have a cone-shaped crown, and the bark on the trunks is extremely thick, up to 0.3 m. By the way, immediately after removal, the bark has a pleasant reddish color, darkening over time, from which another sequoia name comes from - “mahogany ". root system giants is not deep, but wide. In young trees, the leaves are flat, elongated, about 1.5-2.5 cm, and in old sequoias at the top, the crowns take the form of scales about 0.5-1 cm in length. Sequoia seeds are 1.5-3 cm long, ovoid, with two dozen spirally twisted scales. Seeds ripen 8-9 months, each fruit contains 3-7 seeds.

Tallest tree: 1st, Hyperion

Only one and a half dozen trees in the world managed to jump the bar of 110 meters, another fifty - the bar of 105 meters. Some giants succeeded others in the rank of record holder. On the this moment, according to official data, The tallest tree in the world is the Hyperion sequoia.

The leader of our rating was discovered in 2006 by amateur naturalists Michael Taylor and Chris Atkins (by the way, it was they who found the other two tallest trees on earth) in Redwoods Park (California), in a tributary of Redwood Creek. The height of the tallest tree at that time was 115.5 m. Measurements of the current year, 2015, showed that the tree had grown by 16 cm. However, its growth was slowed down - this was facilitated by woodpeckers that damaged the top of the tree. Since the closest competitor to the tallest tree on the planet is 114.58 cm tall and grows faster than Hyperion, over time, the tallest tree may give way to the palm.

Hyperion's trunk diameter is 4.84 meters at a height of one and a half meters from the ground. It is located in the depths of the national park, and its exact location was not disclosed to the public - so that tourists do not disturb the giant's ecosystem. The tallest tree in the world is about 750 years old, and the area of this sequoia is estimated at 502 "square".

Tallest tree: 2nd place, Helios

On the other side of the Redwood Creek tributary grows a tree, recognized in the summer of 2006 as the tallest tree on earth, but resting on the lava of the winners for a little more than two months. Now Helios - that's what they called this sequoia with a height of 114.58 m - is in second place in the ranking. Its trunk diameter is 4.96 m.

Unlike the leader, the location of Helios was not hidden from tourists, and everyone has the opportunity to admire it.

Tallest tree: 3rd place, Icarus

In 2006, in the same Redwoods park, near the same tributary of Redwood Creek in California, a sequoia Icarus was discovered with a height of 113.14 m. The diameter of the trunk of this tree was 3.78 meters.

Tallest Tree: 4th, Giant of the Stratosphere

For six whole years - from the moment it was discovered in 2000 until 2006 - the giant of the Stratosphere was considered the tallest tree on earth. It was discovered in Humboldt National Park in Rockefeller Forest. The first measurements showed a height of 112.34 meters. After 10 years, the sequoia grew to 113.11 meters. The exact location of the giant of the Stratosphere has not been disclosed.

Giant of the Stratosphere

AT national parks Sequoia and Humboldt-Redvus are growing a lot more giant sequoias Sequoia semprevirens, which literally breathe down the back of the leader's head. Some of them for a long time were considered the tallest trees on the planet - for example, Mendocino, the sequoia of the National Geographic Society.

However, not only sequoias can boast of large sizes. You have probably heard of the tall eucalyptus trees that grow in Australia. At the moment, the height of the highest eucalyptus is 101 meters. This is the regal Eucalyptus Centurion, discovered on the island of Tasmania in 2008. The diameter of the trunk of this tree is 40.5 cm, and the age is at least four hundred years. There are reports that these trees used to grow up to 155 m in height, but this has not been documented in any way.

Eucalyptus Centurion

In general, the height of the largest plants on the planet becomes smaller over time. The reason for this is human activity and the violation of ecosystems that are not able to "feed" the giants. Perhaps very soon, in the still not fully explored places of our planet, a new one will be found. Nevertheless, we have something to admire, something to keep and appreciate today.
Tatyana Kuzmenko, member of the editorial board of the Sobcorrespondent of the online publication "AtmWood. Wood-industrial bulletin"