They grow them BIG here…Redwood trees…Sequoia sempervirens…the tallest trees in the world. The new record holder is almost 380 feet in height. Because they are disease, insect and fire resistant, they can live more than 2000 years, but are not the oldest trees in the world. That would be bristlecone pines, the oldest of which, in the White Mts. of California, is 4600 +. The oldest pine used to be 4900, but it was cut down in 1964 so that its rings could be checked to find out how old it was.
Redwoods have very shallow roots, intertwined with, and supporting the roots from adjacent trees. When one falls, many fall. We had a major winter windstorm last year that took big chunks out of some of the parks where stands of trees fell like dominos. A big swath of nature's clear-cutting.
A redwood grove is like a magnificent cathedral, cool and still and holy, with a carpet of ferns, moss, trilliums, salal, sorrel, and a soaring canopy streamed with light. Walk through the dappled light for healing.
Redwoods have very shallow roots, intertwined with, and supporting the roots from adjacent trees. When one falls, many fall. We had a major winter windstorm last year that took big chunks out of some of the parks where stands of trees fell like dominos. A big swath of nature's clear-cutting.
A redwood grove is like a magnificent cathedral, cool and still and holy, with a carpet of ferns, moss, trilliums, salal, sorrel, and a soaring canopy streamed with light. Walk through the dappled light for healing.
Tourists really do lie on their backs to take pictures of the canopy, although I’ve never seen anyone doing it in the middle of the road:
“Just look at the picture of the big trees that Henry took, Lucille.”
“Now, that’s real nice, Martha. Too bad that logging truck had to come along.”
“Yeah, it pretty much made a mess of Henry, but at least we saved the camera.”
Individual groves of redwoods often have small signs posted in the ground near them to identify a sponsoring individual or organization. The area of many, many trees around the place at the river where we go swimming is designated “The California Federation of Women’s Clubs Grove”. Many years ago, Ronald Reagan made a statement that “If you’ve seen one redwood, you’ve seen them all”, in reference to a campaign to save the giant old-growth redwoods from being logged out. Shortly after, a sign appeared on a tree standing all by itself next to the highway in the town of Arcata naming it “The Ronald Reagan Memorial Grove”.
“Just look at the picture of the big trees that Henry took, Lucille.”
“Now, that’s real nice, Martha. Too bad that logging truck had to come along.”
“Yeah, it pretty much made a mess of Henry, but at least we saved the camera.”
Individual groves of redwoods often have small signs posted in the ground near them to identify a sponsoring individual or organization. The area of many, many trees around the place at the river where we go swimming is designated “The California Federation of Women’s Clubs Grove”. Many years ago, Ronald Reagan made a statement that “If you’ve seen one redwood, you’ve seen them all”, in reference to a campaign to save the giant old-growth redwoods from being logged out. Shortly after, a sign appeared on a tree standing all by itself next to the highway in the town of Arcata naming it “The Ronald Reagan Memorial Grove”.
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