The most gigantic tree in the world. Tallest tree

Magnificent and unique. There are truly incredible specimens that amaze with their age, size, extraordinary appearance and legendary fate. Choose just ten of the most amazing trees the world is very difficult, but, unfortunately, we are limited to the scope of this article. Among the plants remained silent witnesses to global tragedies, the rise and fall of entire civilizations, wars, and climate change. These wise, huge creatures - the largest and oldest trees - have been reaching out to the sun for thousands of years and quietly contemplating the restless world around them.

Giant trees can be found on almost all continents. They are impressive and amaze with their size. Being next to such an unusual plant is a real miracle, reminding people of how small their role is compared to the vast world.

Pando Tree

Pando, nicknamed the Trembling Giant, amazes the imagination with the area it occupies, age and weight... Indeed, this is the most a big tree in the world! Pando Grove is a colossal forest of fifty thousand aspen poplar trunks, which, surprisingly, is one plant with a single root system. All trees are parts of a giant living organism that weighs 6,600 tons and covers an area of ​​43 hectares. The age of the Giant Pando is estimated by researchers at 80 thousand years. This unique forest tree grows in the USA, near the Colorado Plateau, Utah.

Sequoia General Sherman

The General Sherman Sequoia is the largest free-standing tree in the world by volume and is 2,000 years old. The girth of the trunk of the ancient giant is almost 25 meters, and the crown is 33 meters. This sequoia has already reached almost 85 meters in height, and it is still growing. One can only guess what it will be like in, say, a thousand years. Growing giant sequoia in the Sierra Nevada mountains, USA.

Thule tree

Tule is the largest tree in the world by trunk girth. The curiosity is located in the immediate vicinity of the city of Oaxaca, Mexico. The circumference of the giant plant is 58 meters at the foot, and its age is from one and a half to six thousand years. It was once believed that there were three trees, but recent DNA analysis has refuted this assumption.

Hyperion

In the Redwoods region (USA, California), the largest tree in the world grows in height, which already reaches 115 meters. They named him Hyperion. The location of the giant is carefully hidden. Scientists fear that frequent visits could destroy the surrounding ecosystem and damage the health of the plant, which is conservatively estimated to be 800 years old.

Great Banyan

The Great Banyan is a tree consisting of many interlacing trunks and has the largest crown in the world (its circumference is approximately 350 meters). It grows in India, the city of Howrah. The Great Banyan Tree is estimated to be 250 years old. This plant of the species Ficus benghalensis (Ficus Bengal) is more reminiscent of a small grove, and all because of the huge number of roots protruding from the ground and clones that have separated from the main trunk.

Methuselah

In the name biblical prophet called one very ancient tree species of pine is durable, according to other sources - intermontane bristlecone. The long-lived plant is almost 5 thousand years old. Outwardly, it is practically unremarkable, but scientists believe that it is the oldest tree in the world. To protect the rarity from vandals, it was necessary to hide its exact location. We only know that this is the Inyo National Forest, USA, California.

Hundred Horse Chestnut

The oldest chestnut tree that grows on the slope of Etna is about 3 thousand years old. Among its “relatives” it is considered the largest. This plant is even associated with a beautiful legend about Giovanna of Aragon, Queen of Naples, who, together with a hundred knights and their war horses guarding her, was able to wait out the rain under the spreading thick crown.

Dragon Tree

On the island of Tenerife there is a Dragon Tree that is unique in appearance. Scientists still cannot accurately determine its age, because this miracle of nature does not have a trunk as such. The tree is held together by the finest interweaving of many stems, which firmly cling to each other and form something like a column. Above this makeshift trunk there is a dense canopy of leaves. The plant secretes a resinous sap when its leaves and bark are cut, which locals call dragon's blood. The tree is considered healing and is actively used in folk medicine.

Pirangi tree

In the vicinity of the city of Natal (Brazil) you can find unusual tree cashew, which, as a result of a long-standing mutation, over 127 years of life has grown by as much as 2 hectares. As soon as a branch that bends to the ground touches the soil, it takes root and turns into another trunk of this single forest. Farmers claim that every year this magnificent tree bears more than 80 thousand fruits.

The tree of Life

In the very center of the Bahrain desert, in the middle of the hot sands without any signs of vegetation, for the past 400 years there has been a lonely acacia tree, which is called the Tree of Life. No one can say for sure how this plant can exist for several centuries without visible sources of life-giving moisture and normal soil. Some claim that this acacia comes from the mythical Eden and has special powers.

All of the largest trees in the world listed in our article deserve to be included in the Guinness Book of Records. Each of them has something to brag about: some amaze with their height, others with their age or wondrous beauty, and still others with their incredible resilience and desire to survive. But they all have one thing in common overall quality- these giants support in people the ability to be amazed at the wonders of our incomparable planet.

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 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 tall trees grow in the USA, and they all belong to a single species - the evergreen sequoia.

These trees are classified as conifers 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-breaking trees is given 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, but 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 tallest on the planet, but then a tree was found that was taller than it and it is this tree that is number one 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 trunk diameter is 3.78 meters. This tree was discovered only in 2006. Its location is hidden from tourists.

4: Stratosphere Giant

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

5: National Geographic Society

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

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

6: Orion

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

7: Lauralin

8: Rockefeller

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

9: Paradox

Evergreen sequoia (Sequoia sempervirene). This plant is also located on the west coast of the United States, in the state of California. The height of this tree is 112.56 meters and the diameter is 3.9 meters.

10: Mendocino Tree

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

The height of this giant is 112.20 meters and its 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, 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 the strange appearance of this tree. Baobab wood is very porous and retains water during the rainy season. Then it uses this reserve during drought. This tree has a huge crown, its diameter can reach forty meters. The wood of the tree is very loose and is easily destroyed by fungal diseases. The resulting huge hollows are used by Africans for their own purposes.

12: Banyan

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The flora of planet Earth is striking in its diversity. The “lungs” of the Earth - forests and groves - have attracted the attention of people for a long time. The huge number of species and forms of trees has made them objects of study.

There are many ratings of the largest trees, the oldest, the most cold-resistant... We present a rating of the tallest trees in the world. Historically, the most remarkable specimens grow on the American and Australian continents.

The tallest trees in Australia: legends and reality

Back in the 19th century there was no measuring instruments, which would allow us to name the exact height of the tree - up to a centimeter. Therefore, people who encountered giant eucalyptus trees in Australian forests had to take their word for it. In 1872, an Australian resident reported finding a 150-meter tall eucalyptus tree in the forest. But, alas, there was no documentary evidence of this.

The tallest tree in Australia, which was measured already in the middle of the 20th century, is a specimen of the regal eucalyptus, and its height is significantly less than 150 meters. It grows on Mount Baw Baw in Queensland and reaches a height of 99.4 meters. A second tree of comparable height of the same species is located 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 the title of absolute leader - these coniferous giants grow mainly on the West Coast of the USA, off the coast Pacific Ocean. Sequoias received their 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 entirely composed 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 photographs of them on the Internet. This was done on purpose - so that curious tourists would not make pilgrimages to the sequoias and would allow them to grow peacefully.

It's interesting that in late XIX century, when redwood groves were given the status national parks, rangers began to monitor forest fires and prevent them from spreading. It would seem that this is a good and right thing. However, several years later it turned out that during this time not a single young sequoia tree appeared in the groves.

The solution looked paradoxical, but turned out to be correct. It turned out that Forest fires needed in life cycle redwoods. 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 has a chance to germinate. And at this time, a forest fire burns out fallen needles and foliage and allows the earth to “breathe.”

Top 10 Tallest Trees in the World: Redwoods

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 trunk 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. A redwood tree named Lauralin grows in the same Humboldt County. 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 national park Redwoods 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 Geographical Society(NGS), is rightfully considered an asset to the surrounding Redwood Creek area. Height – 112.71 meters. The trunk volume is 4.39 meters.

The editors of the site clarify: it is easy to notice that these trees differ little in height and are located quite closely together in the ranking. The unofficial title of the first among the giants passed from one specimen to another several times. For an entire year - from 1994 to 1995 - the NGS sequoia was considered the tallest in the world.

4. The giant of the Stratosphere - a sequoia with a height of 113.11 meters - 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 Stratosphere Giant increased by seventy centimeters - from 112.34 meters.

3. The top three tallest trees in the world are closed by the sequoia “named” Icarus. Height – 113.14 meters, trunk volume – 3.78 meters. Icarus got its name from its sun-scorched, reddish dead top.

2. The second tallest tree in the world is called Helios and grows near 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, soon an even more impressive tree was discovered on the other side of the river.

Tallest tree in the world: Hyperion

1. Now officially the tallest tree in the world is called Hyperion. This is a sequoia that grows on the opposite bank from its brother, Helios. Hyperion has held the championship in size since August 25, 2006, when it was discovered by two naturalists. Hyperion's height is 115.61 meters, girth is 4.84 meters. Most tall sequoia about to lose your status

And the Helios sequoia, which now ranks second in the world ranking, according to ecologists, 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 in which sequoias grow. This rare view, and environmentalists are trying to support it - to grow it specifically in British Columbia (Canada) and carefully protect natural reserves with sequoias. We invite you to read about endangered animal species - the rarest populations consist of up to several dozen individuals.
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Various studies show that today the highest are coniferous trees. Record holders usually come from the genus of eucalyptus, sequoia or other members of the Cypress family. While not all corners of the world have been thoroughly studied, there is a possibility that new technologies will help make new botanical discoveries.

For example, plants that are now considered the tallest in the world were discovered between 2006 and 2008. For a long time the location of the giants was kept secret so that the flow of curious naturalists would not harm the ecosystem of the place where the giants grow.

Tallest tree in the world

Today, the tallest tree in the world is the Hyperion sequoia, which grows in California. Trunk of this plant has a diameter of 4.85 meters. The tree has grown 115.5 meters in height and covers an area of ​​502 square meters. Researchers believe that Hyperion took root in the 13th century, and estimate its age at seven to eight centuries. The tree got its name in honor of one of the titan gods in ancient Greek mythology. The exact coordinates of the giant, which could be entered into GPS, were not released to the public. The tree is known to be located in one of the remote areas state reserve Redwood in the USA.

In the park where the giant tree is located, there are several other very tall sequoias. These include Helios, whose height is 114.5 meters. He bore the title of absolute giant among his fellows until a taller specimen was found. By the way, this happened just a few months later in the same area. Interestingly, in ancient Greek mythology, Hyperion is the father of Helios. The trees grow close to each other. The trunk of Helios is thicker than that of Hyperion and is 4.96 meters. Given the available data, it turns out that the two tallest trees in the world are in the United States.

Record holders in Russia

The Siberian fir is recognized as the record holder for height in Russia. But in a country with the most large area forests, there is no official holder of the title of botanical giant. There are many giant fir specimens in Siberian forests. The height of representatives of this family can reach 100 meters. There is no doubt that somewhere in the depths of the Siberian taiga rises a giant, not inferior to the American Hyperion. By the way, speaking of sequoias, an impressive representative of this species grows in Crimea. In the Nikitsky Botanical Garden in Yalta there is a tree whose height is 38 meters. The age of the Crimean giant does not exceed two hundred years.

The peninsula is also home to some of the oldest trees in Russia. According to preliminary estimates of researchers, yews and some types of junipers took root in the Crimean mountains no earlier than 2-3 thousand years ago. It is noteworthy that yews and junipers do not differ in height and large trunk diameter. They fit compactly into rock crevices, without fear of cliffs and steep mountain slopes. A height of 20 - 25 meters for such trees is evidence of an age of several thousand years. At least a dozen such trees have already been registered by volunteers in Crimea.

Widest tree

Baobab is a tree whose width exceeds that of all competitors. The trunk diameter of representatives of this species can reach ten meters. The most powerful fat man today is a tree called the “Big Baobab”. The girth of its base is 47 meters. The Big Baobab is located on the Van Heerden ranch in Limpopo province.

While landscaping the area, the owners noticed a cavity in the trunk of a huge tree, they cleaned it out and set up a bar in the resulting space. The Van Heerdens called their establishment “The Baobab Bar.” The diameter of the tree trunk is 10.6 meters. Research has shown that this baobab tree is more than 6 thousand years old, but the most interesting thing is that it continues to grow and bloom every spring.

Tallest tree in Africa

Speaking about baobabs, one cannot fail to mention that in their homeland there are also many giant trees. The tallest tree in Africa is on Mount Kilimanjaro. It comes from the genus Entandrophragm. The family of these plants settled in Tropical Africa and are not found anywhere else, this species is endangered. The highest entandrophragm on Mount Kilimanjaro reached 81.5 meters.

According to researchers, the tree is about 500 years old. Near the giant there are several more worthy representatives of their species. The group of trees on Mount Kilimanjaro was measured for four years, and in 2016 it was finally reported that average height entandrophragm in this area is 70-80 meters.

Record holders of the past

When talking about the tallest trees in the world, we cannot fail to mention the famous giants of the past. The most famous tree measured is the regal eucalyptus, found in Australia by forester William Fergusson. The man measured the tree and left notes about his discovery in 1872. According to Fergusson, the eucalyptus at the time of its discovery had a height of 132.5 meters, but based on indirect evidence, the forester concluded that previously the crown of the tree was 20 meters higher. Unfortunately, it is no longer possible to verify this data. The eucalyptus was felled and sawn into pieces for later use as building material.

Another famous giant of the past is Douglas yew from Lynn Valley in British Columbia. According to reports in 1902, the tree grew 126.5 meters in height. It was also cut down and used for firewood. The third dead tree, the record of which has already been broken by representatives of the same genus, is another Californian sequoia. In 1873, foresters reported the height of this tree to be 112 meters.

Australia's tallest tree at the beginning of the last decade was destroyed by fire. Eucalyptus, which received the name El Grande, was one of the most worthy inhabitants of the forest in the south of the island of Tasmania. At the time of death, the tree was more than 79 meters high. In 2008, a tree was found in the same area, which is now considered the main giant of Australia. The regal eucalyptus, 99.6 meters high, received the Roman name Centurion.

City giants

It is unlikely that anyone would be surprised by the fact that the tallest and oldest trees are hidden from people in the thicket of the forest, nature reserve or in the mountains. In cities, giant plants simply cannot survive. In every locality there is a giant of its own, but the parameters of such plants are usually more modest than those of their wild-growing counterparts.

The Moscow champion in height among trees is the most beautiful magnolia kobus, which grows on the territory Botanical Garden next to the Moscow City complex. According to gardeners, this particular plant is the tallest in the Russian capital. There are many relict trees on the territory of the botanical garden, which are listed in the Red Book. Most of the vegetation that is represented in this interesting place, you won’t see it anywhere else in Moscow.

America's Capital District also has a champion - a 32-meter white oak tree growing on Northampton Street. Interestingly, the giant is protected by local residents as a city treasure. Volunteers take care of the tree’s crown, prevent acts of vandalism, and even organize tributes to the giant. The oak has a rival in Georgetown, namely the 29-meter lyran or tulip tree. A plant from the magnolia family received one of its names due to the shape of the flowers that appear on the branches at the end of May. In the USA the tree is also called "yellow poplar".

To the west of Canada's main city, in the tiny town of Arnprior, there grows a 47-meter Weymouth pine, which is considered an Ontario record holder. This tree is at least two hundred years old and is a local landmark.

In Japan, trees are not rated by height, but there is a champion there too. A huge wisteria, about 150 years old, grows in the Ashikaga Flower Park. During the flowering period, the plant attracts crowds of curious spectators who take photos and videos of the tree’s crown, which stretches over an area of ​​two thousand square meters.

The oldest tree

Speaking of records, it is worth mentioning trees that survived world wars, drought, climate change and even some states. The tree with the oldest root system today is recognized as the spruce nicknamed Old Tikko. Researchers suggest that this plant has been living for nine and a half thousand years. Its trunk can be seen on Mount Fulufjellet in Sweden.

Spruce "Old Tikko" - the oldest tree in the world

Another representative of antiquity is the intermountain bristlecone pine Methuselah. Its age is estimated to be between 4500-5000 years. Despite his advanced age and rather shabby appearance, the tree is considered alive. It is native to the Inyo National Forest in America.