List of oldest trees
List of longest living trees
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This is a list of the oldest-known trees. Definitions of longevity vary between clonal trees, ones where parts of the tree continue to live after the death of the first trunk or trunks, and non-clonal trees.[2] Tree ages are derived from a variety of sources, including documented "tree-ring" (dendrochronological) count core samples, radiocarbon dating, girth-to-age formulas, and estimates from growth rates.[3] For these reasons, there are three lists of "oldest trees" here, using different criteria.
The three tables of trees are listed by age and species. The first table includes trees for which a minimum age has been directly determined, either through counting or cross-referencing tree rings or through radiocarbon dating. Many of these trees may be even older than their listed ages, but the oldest wood in the tree has rotted away. For some old trees, so much of the center is missing that their age cannot be directly determined. Instead, estimates are made based on the tree's size and presumed growth rate. The second table includes trees with these estimated ages. The last table lists clonal colonies in which no individual tree trunks may be remarkably old but in which the organism as a whole is thought to be very old.
The record-holders for individual, non-clonal trees are the Great Basin bristlecone pine trees from California and Nevada, in the United States. Through tree-ring cross-referencing, they have been shown to be almost five millennia old.[4]
A clonal colony can survive for much longer than an individual tree. A colony of 48,000 quaking aspen trees (nicknamed Pando), covering 106 acres (43 ha) in the Fishlake National Forest of Utah, is considered one of the oldest and largest organisms in the world. Recent estimates set the colony's age at about 16,000 to 37,000 years,[1] although tree ring samples date individual stems at rarely more than 130 years.[5][6][7][8][9] A colony of Huon pine trees covering 2.5 acres (1.0 ha) on Mount Read (Tasmania) is estimated to be around 10,000 years old, as determined by DNA samples taken from pollen collected from the sediment of a nearby lake. Individual trees in this group date to no more than 4,000 years old, as determined by tree ring samples.[10]
Non-clonal trees with ages from cross-dating
Cross-dating via dendrochronology is the most exact method for dating a wood sample.[11] Cross-dating is the method of finding the age of a tree ring by matching growth patterns across multiple trees from the same location.[12] Cross-dating can date a wood sample to a precision of one year.[12]
This list contains tree ages determined from dendrochronological cross-dating. It has all trees with ages more than 2000 years, and a sample of notable trees (one per species) younger than that. If cross-dating has not been reproducible (e.g., because a tree core has become missing), the unreproduced age is listed in the section below. If there are multiple ages (e.g., due to inconsistency in tree cores or lack of reproducibility), the lowest verified age is shown here, and the highest is shown in the estimated table, below.
Non-clonal trees with estimated ages
Note: The ages of the trees in this list are estimated via methods that are less accurate than cross-dating. Some of the ages are based on tree size, which is known to have 20% error.[34] Ages in this table should be treated as speculative.
| Name | Age (years) | Species | Location | Country | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Alerce Milenario or Gran Abuelo | 5,484 | Patagonian cypress Fitzroya cupressoides } |
Cordillera Pelada, Los Ríos | Chile | A new 2022 estimation of 5,484 years expands on a previous minimum age based on incomplete tree rings of 3,655.[17][18] |
| ?[nb 1] | 5,077 | Great Basin bristlecone pine Pinus longaeva | White Mountains (California) | United States | Tree cored by Edmund Schulman, age determined by Tom Harlan. However, core is missing and date is unconfirmed.[14][35] |
| Methuselah | 4,860[nb 2] | Great Basin bristlecone pine Pinus longaeva | White Mountains (California) | United States | [14] |
| Llangernyw Yew | 4,000–5,000 | Common yew Taxus baccata | Llangernyw, Conwy | United Kingdom | Girth of 10.75 m. Situated in the churchyard of St Dygain's Church in Llangernyw village, Wales. One of the 50 Great British Trees. |
| Sarv-e Abarkuh | 4,500 | Mediterranean cypress Cupressus sempervirens | Abarkuh, Yazd | Iran | Also called "Zoroastrian Sarv".[37][38] |
| Gümeli Porsuğu | 4,115 | Yew Taxus baccata | Zonguldak | Turkey | Alive, found in 2016.[39][40] |
| The Ancient Yew | 4,000 | Yew Taxus baccata | Tisbury, Wiltshire | United Kingdom | 37 feet in circumference. Situated in the churchyard of St John's, Tisbury. Carbon dated by David Bellamy.[41] |
| The Senator | 3,500 | Pond cypress Taxodium ascendens | Longwood, Florida | United States | Died in January 2012 from human-caused fire.[42][43] |
| Oliveira do Mouchão (KNJ1/601) | 3,350 | European olive tree
Olea europea L. var. europaea |
Mouriscas, Abrantes | Portugal | Alive.[44][45] In 2016, José Luís Lousada, a researcher at the University of Trás-os-Montes and Alto Douro, estimated the tree's age at approximately 3350 years using dendrometry. According to this assessment with an estimate age precision of 2%, it is considered the oldest tree in Portugal.[46] |
| S'Ozzastru | 3,000–4,000 | Olive Olea europaea | Luras, Sardinia | Italy | [47] |
| The President | 3,200 | Giant sequoia Sequoiadendron giganteum | Sierra Nevada, California | United States | Alive. |
| Fortingall Yew | 3,000 | Common yew Taxus baccata | Fortingall, Perthshire | United Kingdom | Alive. Possibly the oldest tree in Britain.[48][49][clarification needed] |
| Alishan Sacred Tree | 3,000 | Formosan cypress Chamaecyparis formosensis | Alishan National Scenic Area, Chiayi | Taiwan | Collapsed on 1 July 1997, following heavy rainstorms.[50] |
| Patriarca da Floresta | 3,020 | Jequitibá-rosa | Santa Rita do Passa Quatro, São Paulo | Brazil | Alive. Probably the oldest non-conifer in Brazil. Its name translates as "Patriarch of the Forest". Located at the Vassununga State Park.[51] |
| Great Camphor of Takeo | 3,000+ | Cinnamomum camphora "Camphor Tree" | Takeo, Saga | Japan | A large Camphor tree reputed to be over 3,000 years old.[52] Worshipped at a Shinto shrine dedicated to the tree, dating back to the 700s C.E.[53] Alive. |
| Raintree | 3,000+ | Great Basin bristlecone pine | Spring Mountains, Nevada | United States | Great Basin Bristlecone Pine located near Kyle Canyon in the Spring Mountain range in Southern Nevada, USA. Estimated 3000 years old but never cored. |
| Oliveira de Santa Iria de Azóia | 2,850 | Olive Olea europaea | Santa Iria de Azoia, Loures | Portugal | Magnificent Olive tree, probably the last one from a large olive grove. Studied by UTAD University and now classified "Public interest tree" by the Portuguese National Forest Authority; Tree ID[54] |
| Mother of the Forest | 2,520 | Giant sequoia Sequoiadendron giganteum | Sierra Nevada, Calaveras Big Trees State Park, California | United States | Dead. |
| ? | 2,521 | Coast redwood Sequoia sempervirens | California | United States | [55] |
| Sarv Zibad | 2,500 | Mediterranean cypress Cupressus sempervirens | Sarv Zibad, Khorasan | Iran | Also called "holly Sarv".[37][38] |
| Panke baobab | 2,464 | African baobab Adansonia digitata | Matabeleland North | Zimbabwe | Died in 2011; the oldest non-clonal angiosperm ever documented.[56] |
| Jaya Sri Maha Bodhi | 2,312 | Sacred fig Ficus religiosa | Anuradhapura, North Central Province | Sri Lanka | A sapling claimed to be from the Bodhi tree, the legendary tree under which the Buddha is said to have become enlightened. It was brought to its current location and planted at around 288 BCE by Sanghamitra, daughter of Emperor Ashoka. It is the oldest living human-planted tree in the world with a known planting date.[57] |
| General Sherman | 2,300–2,700 | Giant sequoia Sequoiadendron giganteum |
Giant Forest, Sequoia National Park, California | United States | Alive with a height of 83.8 meters (275 ft), a diameter of 11 m (36 ft) at its base, and an estimated bole volume of 1,487 m3 (52,513 cu ft), it is the largest known living single-stem tree, and among the tallest, widest, and longest-lived of all trees on Earth.[58][59] |
| Kayano Ōsugi | 2,300 | Japanese cedar Cryptomeria japonica | Yamanaka Onsen, Ishikawa | Japan | Girth of 9.6 m. One of the four trees believed to be sacred in the precincts in a Shinto shrine. Its name translates as "Great Sugi of Kayano". |
| Oliveira de Santa Luzia | 2,210 | Olive Olea europaea | Santa Luzia, Tavira, Algarve | Portugal | Alive.[60] |
| Jōmon Sugi | 2,170–7,200 | Japanese cedar Cryptomeria japonica | Yakushima | Japan | Girth of 16.4 m. Exact dating is made difficult by the rotten core of the trunk. Its name is a reference to the Jōmon period of Japanese prehistory.[61][62][63] |
| Ballyconnell Yew | 2,000–5,000 | Yew Taxus baccata | Ballyconnell, Annagh | Ireland | Oldest tree in Ireland.[citation needed] |
| Elia Vouvon | 2,000–5,000 | Olive Olea europaea | Kolymvari, Crete | Greece | Its name translates as "Olive Tree of Vouves".[64] |
| Castagnu dê Centu Cavaddi | 2,000–4,000 | Sweet chestnut Castanea sativa | Sicily | Italy | Its name translates as the "Hundred Horse Chestnut". |
| Chandelier Tree | 2,000-2,500 | Coast redwood Sequoia sempervirens | Leggett, California | United States | The name "Chandelier Tree" comes from its unusual limbs that resemble a chandelier. The limbs, which measure from 4 to 7 ft (1.2 to 2.1 m) in diameter, begin 100 ft (30 m) above the ground. It is 2,400 years old.[65] |
| Ulleungdo Hyangnamu | 2,000–3,000 | Chinese juniper Juniperus chinensis | Ulleung-gun, Gyeongbuk | South Korea | Girth of 4.5 m. One of the main branches was broken in 1985 by typhoon "Brenda". |
| Stara Maslina | 2,249 (2,016-2482)[66] | Olive Olea europaea | Stari Bar, Bar | Montenegro | |
| Tnjri | 2,040+ | Oriental plane Platanus orientalis | Martuni Region | Azerbaijan | Oldest tree in a part of Azerbaijan. Its trunk is hollow. Also known as "Sose's Tree". |
| Koca Katran | 2,030 | Lebanon cedar Cedrus libani | Antalya | Turkey | Alive.[67] |
| ? | 2,010 | Olive Olea europaea | Exo Hora, Zakynthos | Greece | [68] |
| ? | 2,010 | Yew Taxus | Sochi, Krasnodar Krai | Russia | A grove known to possess several 2,000-year-old specimens.[69] |
| Houkisugi at Nakagawa | 2,000 | Japanese cedar Cryptomeria japonica | Nakagawa Settlement, Yamakita, Kanagawa | Japan | |
| Lady Liberty | 2,000+ | Bald cypress Taxodium distichum | Longwood, Florida | United States | Sometimes called the "Companion Tree" to 'Senator". |
| Tejo Milenario | 2,000+ | Yew Taxus baccata | Cazorla, Jaén | Spain | Oldest tree in Spain.[70] |
| ? | 1,952 | Subalpine larch Larix lyallii | Kananaskis, Alberta | Canada | [71] |
| The Pechanga Great Oak Tree | 1,000[72]-2,000 | Coast live oak Quercus agrifolia | Temecula, California | United States | Oldest oak tree in the United States, possibly in the world. |
| Methuselah | 1,800 | Coast redwood Sequoia sempervirens | Woodside, California | United States | [73] |
| Araucaria Madre | 1,810 | Araucaria araucana | Araucanía | Chile | Located in Parque Nacional Conguillío. 1,800 rings account for at least 1,800 years.[74] |
| Granit oak | 1,679 | Pedunculate oak Quercus robur | Granit | Bulgaria | |
| Kongeegen | 1,500–2,000 | Pedunculate oak Quercus robur | Jægerspris Nordskov, Zealand | Denmark | [75] |
| Stelmužė Oak | 1,500–2,000 | Pedunculate oak Quercus robur | Stelmužė, Zarasai | Lithuania | Oldest tree in the Baltic states. Supposedly oldest oak in Europe. |
| Vilémovice Yew | 1,500–2,000 | Common yew Taxus baccata | Vilémovice | Czech Republic | 345 cm (136 in) in circumference.[76] |
| Aubépines | 1,500 | Common hawthorn Crataegus monogyna | Saint-Mars-sur-la-Futaie, Mayenne | France | Oldest tree in France.[77] |
| Jardine Juniper | 1,500 | Rocky Mountain juniper Juniperus scopulorum | Logan Canyon, Utah | United States | [78] |
| Árbol del Tule | 1,433–1,600 | Montezuma cypress Taxodium mucronatum | Santa María del Tule, Oaxaca | Mexico | Stoutest tree trunk in the world. Its name translates as the "Tule Tree". |
| Baikushev's pine | 1,300 | Heldreich's pine Pinus heldreichii | Pirin Mountains | Bulgaria | Oldest known coniferous tree in Bulgaria. It is named after its discoverer, forest ranger Kostadin Baikushev. |
| Te Matua Ngahere | 1,200–4,000 | Kauri Agathis australis | Waipoua Forest, Northland | New Zealand | Oldest tree in New Zealand. Its name translates as "Father of the Forest". |
| Cis Henrykowski | 1270 | Common Yew Taxus Baccata | Henryków Lubański, Lower Silesia, | Poland | Oldest tree in Poland. The age of the tree was estimated based on the trunk circumference and growth rate assessed by taking a core from an undamaged part of the trunk. If the trunk is the result of the fusion of two or three trunks, its age may be younger.[79] |
| Algarrobo Abuelo | 1,200+ | Algarrobo Prosopis chilensis | Villa de Merlo, San Luis Province | Argentina | Possibly oldest algarrobo in Argentina.[citation needed] |
| "The Sisters" or "Sisters Olive Trees of Noah" | 1,163 ±131[80] | Olive Olea europaea |
Bchaaleh, North Governorate | Lebanon | Folk legend also ascribes The Sisters as the source of the olive branch returned to Noah's Ark at the waning of the Biblical Flood.[81] |
Clonal trees
As with all long-lived plant and fungal species, no individual part of a clonal colony is alive (in the sense of active metabolism) for more than a very small fraction of the life of the entire clone. Some clonal colonies may be fully connected via their root systems, while most are not actually interconnected, but are genetically identical clones which populated an area through vegetative reproduction. Ages for clonal colonies, often based on current growth rates, are estimates.[citation needed]
| Name | Age (years) | Species | Location | Country | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| ? | 43,600–130,000 | King's lomatia Lomatia tasmanica | Southwest National Park, Tasmania | Australia | Lomatia tasmanica is an endangered species with only one population, consisting of several hundred genetically identical individuals. Although it flowers occasionally, fruit production has never been observed, and it propagates vegetatively. Fossilized leaves are dated as at least 43,600 years old, found in sediments with a maximum age of 130,000.[82] |
| Pando | less than 16,000–37,000[1][6] | Quaking aspen Populus tremuloides | Fishlake National Forest, Utah | United States | Covers 107 acres (0.43 km2) and has around 47,000 stems (aged up to 130 years), which continually die and are renewed by its roots. Is also the heaviest-known organism, weighing 6,000 tonnes. |
| Jurupa Oak[83] | 13,000[84] | Palmer oak Quercus palmeri | Jurupa Mountains, California | United States | Quercus palmeri Engelm. = Quercus dunnii Kellogg.[84] |
| Old Tjikko | 9,550 | Norway spruce Picea abies | Fulufjället National Park, Dalarna | Sweden | The tree's stems live no more than 600 years, but its root system's age[85][86] was established using carbon dating and genetic matching.[87] Elsewhere in the Fulu mountains, 20 spruces have been found older than 8,000 years.[88] |
| Old Rasmus | 9,500 | Norway spruce Picea abies | Sonfjället, Härjedalen | Sweden | [89] |
| Mongarlowe mallee | 3,000–13,000 | Mongarlowe mallee Eucalyptus recurva | Mongarlowe, New South Wales | Australia | Alive. A critically endangered species, known only from 6 wild individuals, first described in the 1980s. Based on the size and growth rate of its lignotuber, the largest single specimen is estimated to be 3,000 years old. However, it is possible that two other specimens are actually the result of a split in the original rootstock, and based on their spread of 26m would be estimated at 13,000 years old, potentially the oldest single tree on earth.[90] |
| ? | 3,000[91]–10,000[92] | Huon pine Lagarostrobos franklinii | Mount Read, Tasmania | Australia | Several genetically identical males that have reproduced vegetatively. Although single trees in this stand may be around 3 to 4 thousand years old, the stand itself as a single organism has existed for 10,000 years.[10] |
| Antarctic beech | 2,000 | Antarctic beech Nothofagus moorei |
Repeater Station Road, Springbrook National Park, Queensland | Australia | Three individuals approximately 2000 years old are the parent trees to others in the surrounding forest; they grow clones by coppicing new shoots radially, forming a ring at the base of the parent tree trunk.[93] |
