Bizarre trees. Unusual trees

There are many miracles in the world and amazing phenomena nature, among them it is impossible not to mention unique trees, striking in their size, color and unusual properties. Special attention attracts the following representatives of the plant world.

1. Tallest tree on Earth

The most tall tree on Earth - the Californian evergreen sequoia "Hyperion", growing in the Redwood National Park in California (USA). The name of the giant was given in honor Greek titanium Hyperion, since his name is translated from ancient Greek as “very tall.”

Its height is approximately 115.5 meters, at a height of 1.4 m the trunk diameter is 4.84 meters, the volume of wood is 502 m³. The giant grows by 2.5 centimeters every year. Hyperion is still very young, its age is estimated to be 700-800 years, which is not so long for redwoods, which usually live from three to four thousand years. Photos of Hyperion and its exact location are not published. Park rangers fear that a large influx of tourists will disrupt the ecosystem in which the sequoia has lived for centuries, and that visitors may damage the tree's fine roots, which will lead to its death.

2. The most voluminous tree

The largest tree by volume, the General Sherman sequoiadendron, grows in California in Sequoia National Park. Sequoiadendrons are also called mammoth trees and giant sequoias. Compared to evergreen sequoias, these trees have larger trunk diameters and shorter heights.

The volume of General Sherman sequoiadendron wood is 1486 cubic meters. meters, weight - 1900 tons, height - 83.8 meters, trunk circumference - 31 meters, trunk diameter - 7.7 meters, diameter of the largest branch - 2.1 m. It is considered the largest and heaviest living creature on earth. According to scientists, the age of the giant is 2000-2700 years. The tree continues to grow, the diameter of its trunk increases by one and a half centimeters every year.

3. The thickest tree

The thickest trunk is the Mexican taxodium tree, which grows next to the temple in the Mexican city of Santa Maria del Tule. In honor of this city, the plant is called "Thule Tree". According to measurements taken in 2005, its trunk had a circumference of 36.2 meters, a diameter of 11.62 meters, and a height of 35.4 meters. It is believed that this plant may be between 1,400 and 6,000 years old. Local residents believe that the Tule Tree was planted 1,400 years ago by the Aztec priest of the wind god Ehecatl.

4. The oldest tree

Title oldest tree on Earth belongs to the sequoia " Eternal God", which grows in Prairie Creek National Park in California. According to various estimates, the age of a centenarian ranges from 7 to 12 thousand years. The height of the sequoia is 72.54 meters, the diameter of the trunk is 5.97 meters.

5. The oldest tree planted by man

The oldest tree planted by man grows on the island of Sri Lanka in the city of Anuradhapura and is called “Jaya Sri Maha Bodhi”. The tree belongs to the species Ficus religiosum and is revered by Buddhists in Sri Lanka as a great shrine. They believe that this tree was grown from a cutting taken from sacred tree“Bodhi Sri Maha Bodhi”, under which the Buddha meditated and achieved enlightenment. The Jaya Sri Maha Bodhi tree was brought to Sri Lanka by the daughter of Emperor Ashoka, Princess Sangamita Thera, and was planted in 288 BC. on a 6.5 meter high terrace.

6. Mutant tree that occupies the largest area

Most large area occupied by the Pirangi cashew tree, planted in 1888. Due to a genetic mutation, all its branches, touching the ground, begin to take root. Thus, one tree formed an entire forest with an area of ​​8400 sq.m. The size of the mutant is 80 times the size of a normal cashew tree. Pirangi is highly prolific and produces about 80 thousand nuts annually.

7. The tree with the longest roots

The wild fig tree or sycamore, growing in Africa, has the longest roots. Sycamore roots go as deep as 120 meters.

8. The slowest growing tree

The slowest growing tree in the world is the White Cedar, native to Canada's Great Lakes region. It is believed that he has grown by only 10 cm over the past 155 years.

9. The most poisonous tree in the world

It is better not to get close to the manchineel tree, which grows in Central America and the Caribbean islands, and especially not to taste its fruits, which look like apples. The manchineel tree has become famous as the most poisonous tree on a planet, all parts of which contain toxic milky sap. Manchinella fruits can send a person to the next world; if it gets into the eyes, its milky juice causes blindness and leaves burns on the skin. A person can even go blind from the smoke of burning manchinella wood. According to legend, he died from the poison of the manchineel tree. spanish conquistador Juan Ponce de Leon. An arrow soaked in manchinella juice hit him in the leg, causing a painful death.

10. Wood - container for water

Baobab is a very famous tree, unique theme, which is capable of storing about 120 thousand liters of water and thus surviving drought. Distinctive feature The baobab tree is a swollen trunk, shaped like a bottle or teapot. Some trees reach 20-25 meters in girth. During drought, the trunks decrease slightly in diameter, consuming the accumulated moisture. Baobabs are also notable for the fact that they do not die when the core is destroyed. In the huge hollows of baobab trees, local residents set up warehouses, bus stops, bathhouses and even prisons.

11. The tree has the most colorful bark

The most colorful bark belongs to the rainbow eucalyptus, looking at which you get the impression that the tree was painted with paints by some artist. This phenomenon is explained by the fact that pieces of bark peel off from the tree every year, exposing a green layer, which is then painted in blue, blue, purple, orange, red, brown and other colors. As the tree loses pieces of bark in different times and in different places, its trunk is decorated with bizarre colored stripes. The height of rainbow eucalyptus trees is on average 75 meters, the diameter of the trunk is 2.4 m. In the recent past, eucalyptus trees reached even more impressive sizes and even exceeded the height of sequoias. For example, in 1872, Australian state forest inspector William Ferguson mentioned in a report about a fallen eucalyptus tree, the height of which was 150 meters.

12. Tree invulnerable to bullets

Schmidt birch wood, common in the Primorsky Territory, China and Japan, is distinguished by its extraordinary hardness, one and a half times greater than the hardness of cast iron. It is known that bullets even bounce off the trunk of this birch tree. Schmidt birch wood resists burning, rotting and acids well. It could well replace metal, but this tree is quite rare in nature. Another difference between this tree and other types of birch is the unusual dark color of the bark. In the bark of the Schmidt birch there is only 0.01% betulin - a substance that gives white bark, while in other birches the betulin content ranges from 5 to 20 percent.

13. Tree - diesel fuel producer

The Copaifera langsdorffii tree can rightfully be called a motorist's dream, since its sap is practically no different in composition from diesel fuel. To obtain sap, a hole is made in the bark of the “diesel” tree, through which an oily liquid begins to seep. It is collected and used to fuel cars. One such tree produces about 50 liters of diesel fuel per year. This miracle of nature grows in Brazil, and in our northern latitudes it doesn't take root.

14. Trees fused with stone

Trees fused with stone can be seen at Ta Prokhm Temple, located in the ancient Cambodian temple complex Angkor Wat. These fantastic cotton trees, called ceiba, entwine stone buildings with their huge roots, forming a single whole with them. It is not possible to cut down such a tree, since the ancient stone building will collapse along with it.

15. A mystery tree that can survive in a waterless desert

The strongest will to live is found in the mesquite tree growing in the middle of the desert in Bahrain. The tree grows completely alone; the nearest plants are hundreds of kilometers away. The existence of this tree is a mystery to scientists, as they cannot determine how it gets water in the hot desert. It is believed that its roots go tens of meters deep into the earth, where they reach layers containing water. The age of the amazing tree is 400 years, height - 9.5 meters. For its unbending desire to live, this plant was called the Tree of Life.

The natural world amazes us with its diversity. And sometimes any trip to an ordinary forest ends for some interesting discoveries. However, if for some lindens, oaks or spruces are ordinary trees that grow right next to the house, then for others these trees are a real discovery from the natural world. Sequoias, baobabs or silk trees may also appear to us. Therefore, in order to show all the tree diversity of our planet, the site contains a selection of ten of the most incredible and amazing trees.

Amazing dragon tree

This unusual tree is common in subtropical climatic zone on islands near Africa and in Southeast Asia. This plant is an unusual form of the indoor dracaena known to many. However, unlike its indoor counterparts, it is truly gigantic in size.

Amazing dragon tree

The tree has a characteristic thick trunk unusual shape, due to which it has such an impressive appearance. In appearance it can be described as a hypertrophic cactus. All its branches grow upward and it is at the top of the dragon tree that you can see pointed tufts of leaves. Moreover, their trunk can reach four meters in girth and rise twenty meters in height.

The tree gets its unusual name from the resinous sap released when the bark is damaged. For its unusual properties - at first it has no color, and then acquires a bloody color, due to the large amount of dracorubin and dracocarmine pigments in the resin - it received the name “dragon’s blood”. This resin has medicinal purposes and for a long time it was the sale of this “blood” that was the main source of income for the inhabitants of the islands on which the tree grew.

Interesting feature. The tree does not have traditional growth rings and its age is determined by its flowering, which occurs approximately once every fifteen years. The oldest dragon tree grows in Tenerife. Its age is about 400 years.

African fat baobab trees

Baobabs are perhaps one of the most famous trees on the African continent. Almost anyone can recognize these fat men. However, most often they have a sloppy and unaesthetic appearance. And only in Madagascar did they acquire original forms and become real symbols of the island, by which it is recognized throughout the world.

Looking at this tree, anyone can understand its unusualness - Madagascar baobabs, like all their representatives, seem to grow with their roots upward. An ordinary tree reaches 20-30 meters in height and up to 10 meters in trunk girth. However, some representatives of this species can reach up to 80 meters.

An interesting feature of these trees is their dryness. The baobab bark is very thick and does not allow moisture to evaporate. And during the rainy season, it produces the opposite effect - it absorbs streams of water like a sponge and then retains them throughout the dry period.

One more interesting feature These trees are that they are able to take root in almost any condition and, after being cut down, can easily “reborn from the ashes.” Thanks to such vitality, scientists are still unable to accurately determine their life expectancy - some analyzes show only a thousand-year period, while according to others it can reach up to five thousand years.

New version of baobab - bottle tree

bottle tree from Australia

On the Australian continent, which is also known for its arid climate, its analogue of the baobab - the bottle tree - could not help but appear. Here its name sounds more modest - boab. By its very name you can understand that it looks like a pot-bellied bottle. All its varieties, regardless of their height, have a single, similar appearance - a trunk increasing towards the roots.

However, due to its inconspicuousness, it is worth talking about another representative of this genus, bottle trees from the island of Socotra. It is here that endemic trees grow, that is, species that cannot be found anywhere else on earth. The island itself is equidistant from Arabian Peninsula and the African coast, therefore it has arid climate. And just like their baobab counterparts, they retain any liquid in their thick base.

These trees are much lower than their Australian counterparts, but have the same trunk part that lengthens towards the bottom. I would call them “pyramidal” because, unlike African boabs, they have a smoother transition from the bottom of the trunk to the top.

It is especially interesting to watch them during the flowering period - pink flowers appear on the branches, and the bark is filled with an incredible bronze tan. This period for trees begins in February, so those who want to see this extraordinary picture should fly to the island at the end of winter.

Giant Aloe - Quiver Tree

This tree-like evergreen plant grows in the southwestern part of the African continent and has a tall, thick trunk with branches branched at the end. This relative of the domestic aloe known to us reaches a height of nine meters.

Currently, it is most often seen in Namibia. It is in this country that this funny tree grows among a pile of stone boulders. It acquired its second name, quiver tree, due to the fact that African tribes used its trunks to create quivers for arrows.

The uniqueness of this tree is that only this type of tree can be found only where there are stones and severe drought. And these umbrella-shaped crowns and gnarled trunks have a rather picturesque appearance.

The oldest centenarians on Earth are Bristlecone pines.

Bizarre twists of nature

Grows in California unusual trees, whom “time itself is afraid of.” It's about about Bristlecone pines. This group of trees whose age older than age any other organism known to scientists on our planet is now listed in the Red Book. According to scientists, these amazing trees are about four thousand years old and they are the same age as the famous pyramid of Cheops.

Finding yourself in a forest like never before, you realize how short human life. After all, even the youngest of these trees is almost a thousand years old. The oldest tree in the Ancient Bristlecone Pine Forest is the Methuselah pine, which is already 4,723 years old.

The amazing beauty of Bristlecone pine

These trees grow in amazing place, which is more than ever suitable for this - at an altitude of more than three thousand meters above sea level and in conditions of poor soil layer and low humidity. Moreover, this type of pine has another rare feature. Due to the very low rate of regeneration and reproduction, the spread of this species is very difficult.

The most positive tree is the rainbow eucalyptus

Positive tree - rainbow eucalyptus

In the large family of eucalyptus trees, there is one species that, just looking at it, can instantly give you a positive charge. We are talking about rainbow eucalyptus. This majestic tree, which can rise, like all its brothers, to a height of up to seventy meters, has one undeniable advantage - its bark can play with all the colors of the rainbow from yellow and orange shades to green and purple.

These positive trees grow in the Southeast part of the Asian continent, and their homeland is the Philippine island of Mindanao. Such unusual beauties that nature writes on the trunk rainbow eucalyptus, is explained by the process of peeling of the bark, which occurs at different periods of time. And this variety of colors seems to serve as an indicator of the time scale of bark loss.

For example, the bark that a tree has recently removed will have a bright greenish tint. Over time, the bark begins to gradually darken and change its color, gradually becoming purple, then maroon, and eventually gets an orange camouflage.

The fire tree, surprising with its royal beauty

Delonix royal has long been considered one of the most beautiful views trees. And this is no coincidence, since this, as it is also called “fire tree” in the world, attracts everyone with its bright colors. This tree, like the baobab, which was already written about above, comes from Madagascar.

Until the 17th century, only lemurs in the wilds could admire it deciduous forests Madagascar. However, the curiosity of botanists led to the fact that it began to be actively developed in America. As a result, it can now be found throughout the American continent, but in Madagascar itself it has practically disappeared. This was due to the fact that, in addition to its unusual yellow-red flowering, it has another valuable property - the crafts of local residents made from its dense wood are especially valuable. And it was they who were responsible for the fact that the Fire Tree is practically unknown in its homeland.

Delonix regalis is a tropical plant and cannot withstand long periods of drought. That is why it became widespread on the tropical islands of the Caribbean and in South American countries. However, if suitable conditions are created for it, it can be grown in other parts of the world. And, for example, in the southern part of China it has already become a symbol of several cities.

Surprisingly bright Wisteria

Wisteria, or wisteria as it is also called, is a woody deciduous vine. This perennial plant reaches a height of 15-20 meters and has profusely flowering shoots with leaves up to thirty centimeters long.

Now the most famous are two types of wisteria - Japanese and Chinese. It is these two species that have the most vibrant deciduous vines, differing in color from each other.

So, if Chinese wisteria has all sorts of lilac shades, then Japanese representatives have white and pink flowers. And it is the latter that, during flowering, form the most vivid and impressive pictures.

Amazing mangrove trees

In the process of evolution, amazing trees appeared on earth, which are very different from all their relatives. The thing is that this type of tree is almost the complete opposite of most of the trees presented above and, unlike bottle tree or the baobab tree does not need water at all, since it literally lives in it.

All these trees may belong to different species, but due to their specific distribution area they were combined into a single species - mangrove forests. This group of forests includes representatives of 24 species tropical plants. They grow in small tropical lagoons, where they stretch for tens of kilometers in a small strip along sea bays.

The beauty of mangrove trees is most clearly visible underwater

Mangrove trees also look original respiratory system. These trees have developed peculiar adventitious roots, through which the plant is supplied with oxygen.

They look especially beautiful during high tides. At this time, on the water, they seem like a single leafy ocean, nomadic on the water. However, the main beauties can only be observed by lovers of underwater diving - it is under water that picturesque pictures appear, proving that it is not for nothing that mangrove forests are included in the list of the most beautiful trees on Earth.

Trees are part of our lives, providing us with oxygen, food, homes, warmth and building materials. There are about 100,000 various types trees, including a quarter of all living plant species on Earth. Among the billions of trees around the world, there are completely unique and amazing representatives.

Madagascar is considered the birthplace of the baobab; it is also common in Africa and Australia.

Baobab trees are the oldest forms of life on mainland Africa and many of those that still stand today have been growing since Roman times. The amazing baobab or “monkey breadfruit” can grow up to 30 m in height and 11 m in width. They remain without leaves for most of the year. Characteristic feature Baobab is their pot-bellied trunk, which serves as a water storage facility. A baobab tree can hold up to 120,000 liters of water to survive severe drought conditions. Some trunks are so large that people live inside the tree. One of the most beautiful clusters of baobabs of the Adansonia Grandidier species is located on Baobab Avenue in Morondava in Madagascar. Some baobabs take on the shape of a bottle, a skull, and even a teapot.

Dragon Tree in Icod de los Vinos in Tenerife, one of Canary Islands, is a unique representative. It is believed to be between 650 and 1,500 years old, but experts find it difficult to draw exact conclusions as it does not have one trunk. Rather, it consists of many small trunks that hold onto each other as they grow upward. It has a dense canopy of leaves and gets its name from the resin that is released when its bark and leaves are cut. Residents believe that this is dried dragon blood and have been using it to treat various ailments since ancient times.

Giant sequoias, which grow in the Sierra Nevada of California, are considered the largest trees in terms of volume. The largest tree is “General Sherman” in national park Sequoia, whose height reaches 83 m, volume is about 1,486 cubic meters. m, and weighs more than 6000 tons. The tree is believed to be somewhere between 2,300 and 2,700 years old, and each year the tree grows as much wood as a typical 18-foot tree. It is a true natural masterpiece and the greatest living organism on Earth.

4. Pando - aspen-shaped poplar

Pando or the Trembling Giant, located in Utah, USA, is an amazing massive colony aspen trees, sprawled across 100 acres in Utah. Almost all the trees in this colony are genetically identical, that is, they are clones of each other. Every tree in this area grows from a single organism, part of a giant underground root system. Pando is made up of 47,000 trunks and its collective weight is 6,600 tons, making it the heaviest organism in the world. Even though middle age individual trunks are about 130 years old, the entire body is about 80,000 years old.

5. Thule Tree

The Tule tree is a particularly large tree of the species Taxodium mexicanis, which is found near the city of Oaxaca in Mexico. This tree has the largest trunk girth (58 m) and a trunk diameter of 11.5 m. They say that the Tule Tree is so thick that instead of you hugging it, it hugs you. The tree is believed to be about 2000 years old. For a time, detractors claimed that there were actually three trees camouflaging there, but careful DNA analysis confirmed that it was, in fact, one beautiful tree. In 1994, the tree was under threat: the leaves became painful yellow and there were dead branches everywhere. The tree was dying. When the “healers” of the trees were called, it turned out that the problem due to which the Tule tree suffered was ordinary thirst and it needed to be treated with water. Naturally, after careful water procedures, the tree came to life.

6. Tree of Life

The Tree of Life in Bahrain is the loneliest tree in the world. Mesquite tree located at the highest point barren desert Bahrain, hundreds of kilometers from others natural trees. It is believed that its roots extend several tens of meters to aquifers. The exact age of the tree is unknown, but it is believed to be over 400 years old. However, the secret of the Tree of Life is not its size, age or shape, although it is quite large and very beautiful. The most amazing thing is that it stands alone in a barren desert on the highest point of Bahrain, in an area where there is absolutely no water. In a place where it seemed nothing could survive, this tree seems to radiate life itself. People come here in droves, as locals believe that the tree stands on the site of the Garden of Eden.

7. Wollemia

Despite its uniqueness and beauty, Wollemia's interesting qualities lie not in its appearance, but in its history. Wollemia, which grows in Australia, is a real living dinosaur. The oldest fossil of the Wollemia tree dates back to 200 million years ago. When, in 1994, scientists suddenly discovered living tree Wollemia, they were simply dumbfounded. The exact location of these coniferous trees was carefully hidden in order to protect those remaining trees, of which there are less than 100 left in the wild. To save these trees from extinction, a program was launched in 2006 that allowed the general public to purchase Wollemia seedlings and can now be seen in various botanical gardens.

8. Pirangi Cashew Tree

This famous tree, located near the city of Natal in Brazil, is a 177-year-old cashew tree that covers almost 2 hectares of land. It was planted in 1888 by a fisherman who did not know that the tree had genetic mutation, which allowed him to take up so much space. Unlike a regular cashew tree, when the branches of the Piranji tree touch the ground, it takes root and continues to grow. Today this tree serves as a tourist attraction. If you get close to it yourself large tree cashews in the world, you will feel like you are entering a forest. In fact, this is all one tree, the size of which reaches 8400 square meters. m. The tree is 80 times larger than the average cashew tree and covers an area larger than a football field, bearing about 80,000 fruits per year.

9. Tenere Tree

The Ténéré tree is mentioned in this list because it no longer exists. A lone acacia tree growing in the Sahara Desert in Niger, Africa, which was more than 300 years old, was the only tree within a radius of about 400 km. It was the only tree that remained from a huge forest that was swallowed up by the merciless desert. When scientists dug a hole next to the tree, they found that its roots went down to a depth of 36 m below the level groundwater. In 1973, the Tenere Tree was hit by a drunken truck driver, and today a metal monument was built on the site in honor of the Lone Tenere Tree.

10. Banyan: Mahabodhi Tree

The banyan tree is named after the banyan trees or Hindu traders who sold their goods sitting under this tree. Even if you have never heard of the banyan tree, you will probably recognize it. The shape of this giant tree cannot be confused with anything: a majestic dome with aerial roots that descend from the branches to the ground. One of the most famous types of banyan tree called ficus sacred or Bo tree is the Mahabodhi tree in Anuradhapura, Sri Lanka. The tree is said to have been grown from a cutting from the actual tree under which Buddha achieved enlightenment in the 6th century BC. Planted in 288 BC, it is the oldest tree in the world planted by man exact date landings.

November 14, 2012, 10:39

Each type of tree is unique in its own way. There are approximately 100,000 different species of trees, including a quarter of all living plant species on Earth. But among the billions of trees around the world, there are completely unique and amazing representatives. Baobabs


The majestic baobabs of Madagascar are very beautiful trees that can survive very severe drought. They grow mainly in Africa. These baobabs grow on the wonderful island of Socotra. bottle tree And this is a distant relative of the baobab, the Australian bottle tree. In Australia, in the driest areas in the north of Queensland, bottle trees grow, which, like baobabs, can store water in the trunk. They really look like a bottle. Only this “bottle” has two compartments. At the bottom of the trunk, between the bark and the wood, there is a reservoir that holds a significant amount of water. Another reservoir is placed in the middle part of the trunk - however, it does not contain water, but large number sweetish, thick, jelly-like juice, very healthy and nutritious. These trees reach 15 meters in height and 1.8 meters in diameter. Bottle tree of Socotra Island.
also known as Desert Rose. Dragon Tree The Dragon Tree in Icod de los Vinos in Tenerife, one of the Canary Islands, is a unique representative of this species. It is believed to be between 650 and 1,500 years old, but experts find it difficult to make exact conclusions since it has more than one trunk. Rather, it consists of many small trunks that hold onto each other as they grow upward. The tree has a dense canopy of leaves and gets its name from the resin that is released when its bark and leaves are cut away. Residents believe that this is dried dragon blood and have been using it to treat various ailments since ancient times. Dragon trees on Socotra island. The branches of these trees expand towards the sky, and from below they resemble many flying saucers... From above, they look like huge mushrooms. The fact is that for the last 6 - 7 million years, the Socotra archipelago has been isolated from the African mainland, which could not but affect the development of its flora and fauna. Also among the interesting plants of Socotra is a strange and extremely rare Cucumber Tree
This is a plant with prickly wrinkled leaves, spiky fruits similar to ordinary cucumbers and a thick trunk swollen with milky juice. The disproportion between the height and thickness of the trunk, as well as the scant foliage cover, give it a funny appearance. Some specimens do not exceed one and a half meters in height, and have a much larger diameter. Wood flask Its scientific name is moringa and it grows in Africa. When it rains, the jar tree can absorb and retain enormous amounts of water, so it is often pot-bellied. The flag tree can grow up to 6 meters in height. Spiny phagara
The unusual fagara tree is a resident of moist evergreen forests east coast South Africa and Transvaal. Its trunk is literally strewn with eight-centimeter cones with sharp spikes at the end, similar to short massive cow horns. The maximum diameter of the tree reaches half a meter, and the height sometimes exceeds 20 meters. African tulip tree One of the most beautifully flowering plants in the world is the African tulip tree or Spatodea campanulate. Collected in lush inflorescences, the flowers of this tree are orange-red in color and resemble tulip flowers in shape. The tulip tree reaches a height of 7 to 25 meters and is native to dry tropical forests Africa. The open, cup-shaped flowers retain moisture from dew rain, which attracts many species of birds, and the nectar is popular with birds. Another beautiful flowering tree Delonix royal
It has many more names, such as fire tree, fire tree, red flame, peacock flower and phoenix tail. Can be found everywhere tropical climate. But his homeland is Madagascar.
Jacaranda
His homeland is Brazil.
These tall, reaching 15 meters, spreading trees are one of the favorite decorative elements design of streets, squares and public gardens in Argentina and Buenos Aires. Rainbow eucalyptus This is the only species of eucalyptus native to the northern hemisphere. The rainbow eucalyptus is native to the Philippine Islands. In addition to the fact that eucalyptus grows up to 70 meters in height, it also shines with all the colors of the rainbow: its bark can be colored yellow, green, orange and even purple. Take a look at the photo, it seems as if this pattern was painted by some abstract artist, but in fact, this coloring of the rainbow eucalyptus was created by nature itself. The unusual phenomenon is explained by sections of the bark peeling off at different times. The different colors are indicators of the age of the bark: when recently shed, the outer bark will be a bright green color. Over time, the bark darkens and changes from blue to purple and then reaches maroon and orange. The result is a kind of natural camouflage. Indonesia, Papua New Guinea and the Philippines are the natural habitats of this tree. Record-breaking trees A giant sequoia named General Sherman grows in Sequoia National Park in California. Its height is 83 meters, and its weight exceeds 6 tons. General Sherman is a very beautiful tree with a huge history of 2200 years. The chapel oak of Allouville-Bellefosse in France is considered one of the most beautiful oaks in the world. This is not only a tree, but also a structure, and religious monument. The tree chapel was built in 1669 after a lightning strike. Pando Aspens in Utah grow in a colony that is unique in its kind. Each tree here is genetically identical; in fact, it is an integral living organism with an intertwined root system. Pando is made up of 47,000 aspen trees growing on 107 acres. This is a unique natural formation, whose age exceeds 80,000 years!
One of the oldest living organisms on the planet is the Methuselah pine, which is almost 5 thousand years old.
The record holder for crown diameter is the Indian banyan tree. According to measurements in 1929, one of the banyan trees had a crown of 300 meters. Since then the tree has grown even more.
Banyan tree, Cambodia
The El Arboldel Tule cypress in Mexico is so thick that its trunk spans 58 meters - the thickest tree in the world.
There was a version that these were three trees woven together, but analysis showed that this was still one very beautiful specimen. Man-made masterpieces The next examples will be the creations of farmer Axel Erlandson. He shapes his trees accordingly to give each of them a special shape. Erlandson never told anyone how he achieved such forms, taking his secrets to the grave, and his trees were bought by a local millionaire and transplanted into an amusement park.

Ecology

It is known that trees are the lungs of our planet. Without these green representatives of the flora, it would be extremely difficult, if not impossible, for humanity to exist on earth. Their diversity is amazing, and the uniqueness of some of them is fascinating. Below is a list of the most unusual green "lungs" from different countries peace.

1. Bottle tree. It grows in Namibia. This tree is one of the most dangerous plants on the ground. The deadly sap of the bottle tree has the consistency of milk. In the past, these poisonous tree secretions were used by the Bushmen for arrowheads.

The tree grows in the mountainous desert regions of Namibia. The striking resemblance to the bottle is the reason for its name. The flowers of this tree are amazingly beautiful in shape and color. Soft pink or white at the edges, they usually gradually turn into a rich red color towards the center.

2. Wawona tree. This former Sequoia previously grew in the small Mariposa Grove forest located in Yosemite National Park, USA. After a strong hurricane, the sequoia fell and was then turned into a tunnel.

A passage was cut into the tree back in 1881, and since then it has been a popular attraction for tourists from all over the world. According to rough estimates, sequoia is very ancient, its age is 2300 years.

3. Madagascar baobab. From the name itself, the habitat of this plant becomes clear. Trees are over a thousand years old. Baobab is officially listed in the Red Book as a rare endangered species. Some trees reach 80-90 meters in height, with a trunk girth of up to 25 meters.

IN dry seasons swollen trunks of baobab trees are a source of water for entire regions. Trees bloom for only 24 hours. The authorities of Madagascar decided to transfer the flower of the tree to the 100-franc banknote.

4. Bombaxes. These trees grow in Cambodia, but even there they are not everywhere, they only exist certain places where you can see them. Traveling around southeast asia they can be found near the Ta Prokhm temple. The roots of the trees seem to hug an ancient temple.

It's amazing that trees grow to impressive, dizzying heights. Not far from the same temple grow strangler ficuses, which, like their neighboring trees, cover the walls of the temple. The temple building itself is included in the UNESCO list as one of the World Heritage Sites.

5. Hyperion is considered a California redwood. This is the tallest tree in the world. Slender and graceful, it amazes with its beauty. Typically hyperions live for about 1200-1800 years. The tree is quite impressive in size. It reaches 115.5 meters in height and almost 10 meters in diameter.

From which we can conclude that Hyperion is as much as 5 floors higher than the famous Statue of Liberty. According to experts, about 95% of all sequoias died due to their cutting down. These days, these amazing giant trees are especially carefully protected as an endangered species.

6. Peach palm. This tree is often found in Central and South America. However, its official homeland is Costa Rica and Nicaragua. The peach palm tree looks very, very strange: rows of black sharp thorns, reminiscent of edged weapons or hedgehog needles, cover the entire trunk in rings from the roots to the top of the tree.

Typically these trees grow to about 20 meters. The leaves are also large and long, sometimes reaching 3 meters in length. The Indians usually ate the fruits of this palm. This type of food formed the bulk of the Native American diet. If you think that this fruit was consumed exclusively in the Middle Ages, you are mistaken. The fermented fruit of the peach palm remains a favorite and popular delicacy to this day.

7. Crooked trees in the forest of the city of Gryfino. IN Western Poland, near the town of Gryfino, more than 400 of these trees, unusual in shape and curves, grow. The reason why trees have such strange bends is still unknown. According to some assumptions, these trees were bent due to human intervention, but why this was done remains a mystery.

Some believe that the tree hulls were used to make bent wooden furniture, parts for boat hulls, or were used to make ox-drawn plows or other agricultural implements. The outbreak of World War II took those who grew these amazing trees by surprise, people had to quickly abandon these trees, and now the history of their appearance in these forests is a mystery.

8. Baobab Sunland. The location of this tree is South Africa. Sunland Baobab is a tree that grows near Modjadjiskloof, Limpopo Province, a famous region of South Africa. This woody plant has been converted into a bar. The baobab tree is completely hollow inside, which creates a natural space inside it.

In 1933, a small bar was opened in it, which easily accommodates 15-20 people. This is one of the largest baobabs in South Africa, and in all likelihood, the most wide tree throughout the African continent. The tree reaches 4 meters in girth and 20 meters in height. In addition, the bar tree is one of the oldest plants in the world, being over 6,000 years old.

9. Burmis tree. The Burmis tree is a softwood pine that grows near Alberta, Canada. What is unique about this tree? It is unusual in that it died more than 40 years ago in the 1970s of the last century. Surprisingly, it still stands without any signs of rotting. According to experts, at the time of his death he was at least 600-750 years old.

In 1998, due to strong winds, the tree was knocked down, but local residents picked it up and put it back in the position it was in before the storm. Some time later, the hooligans broke one of the branches, and again local residents came to the rescue, they fixed the broken part of the branch in its original place. The Burmis tree is one of the favorite attractions of tourists from all over the world. The tree is considered the most photographed.

10. And finally, the Tree of Life. Location of this amazing plant- Bahrain. This tree, reaching a height of almost 10 meters, is approximately 4 centuries old. It is unusual in that it grows in the desert and is the only growing tree in an area of ​​several kilometers around. Surprisingly, he has no access to water. The roots of this tree go deep underground.

Many people believe that this is how a tree reaches water, but people are unable to fully solve this riddle. The tree is one of the major tourist attractions. Every year, 50,000 people come here from many countries around the world to see it. Local residents believe that this is where the Garden of Eden was located. The Tree of Life is under the protection of UNESCO and, like Bombax, is included in the list of “World Heritage Sites”.

All these trees are amazing in their appearance, age, and a number of other features. They perfectly characterize the area in which they grow. If you ever have the opportunity to see these countries, be sure to visit the places where the trees grow.