6 of the Oldest Trees in the World

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Comment by David A. Fox on February 8, 2012 at 12:58pm

This list certainly confirms how interested people are in ancient trees.

Did you know that, if you live in Florida, for about $150 you can have a plant installed in your yard that is likely close to or over 100 years old?

Comment by Alison Litchy on February 8, 2012 at 11:56am

Humbles you to think all these trees have experienced.  thanks for sharing.

Comment by Don Richardson on February 6, 2012 at 5:00pm

Thanks Dave. A few years back I introduced a younger student group to a 200-year-old plus Shumard Oak at the trailhead to the Old Forest Trail in the middle of Memphis. Two weeks later I received an unexpected scrapbook from the class who decided on their own to describe with comments and drawings what it meant to meet a living thing from 200 years ago. More than one student described the era around 1800 as 'ancient history' or 'prehistoric'. 

My ongoing lesson from that experience: Most folks don't fully comprehend the time span of decades (until they're older), much less centuries. These special trees you can touch, hug or walk around that have witnessed the span of millennia are truly mythological fantasy or science fiction to young minds, and to the select few that get to visit these rare 'natural' monuments, and to the even fewer that 'get' it, that moment becomes a awe-inspiring wonder that will stay them for their entire lives.

Comment by Dave Coulter on February 6, 2012 at 11:31am

What a great list.  It's humbling to think about how long these trees have been around!