I found this photo online. It made me even more convinced that we need to think twice about cutting down trees that were not deliberately cultivated for timber.
This tree was felled in America, in 1891.
It started growing in 550 AD.
Before Mohammed was born.
Before The Battle of Hastings
Before America was discovered.
Before the Declaration of Independence.
Before The Battle of Waterloo.
Before the US Civil War.
Compared to that tree, we humans live our entire lives in the blink of an eye.
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Thanks for the link, Pippa. Shocking!
Best wishes, Pete.
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What a great find. This makes so thoughtful. Thanks for mentioning, Pete! xx Michael
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It is an important photo, and still relevant today of course.
Best wishes, Pete.
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Agreed, Pete! Thanks for sharing! xx Michael
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Reblogged this on NEW BLOG HERE >> https:/BOOKS.ESLARN-NET.DE.
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It’s really frightening how carelessly people treat nature.
A really very impressive representation of the cross section of the age.
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Thanks, Irene. That old photo has never been more relevant.
Best wishes, Pete.
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Wonderful post, and so important Pete. A picture is worth a thousand words.
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Thanks, Jennie. That old photo is even more relevant today.
Best wishes, Pete.
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Yes, it is. You’re welcome, Pete.
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Just watched Monty Din’s Adriatic Gardens, it featured an olive tree, still alive and thought to be 2,000 years old.
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The oldest known tree is thought to be 5,000 years old. It’s a Bristlecone Pine, in the south-west of America.
Best wishes, Pete.
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A similar thought has occurred to me several times over the years. Warmest regards, Theo
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I have always thought about trees, but this graphic and photo really hits home the point.
Thanks, Theo.
Best wishes, Pete.
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Indeed, I remember reading that in the last century we (humans) chopped down about 1/3 of the primary forests. Just like this wonderful ancient tree, these are not easily replaceable. Sadly, it feels like we are acting in a very short sighted manner?
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And it continues in many places too. We should learn a lesson from the trees, but because they can be cut down, they carry on felling them.
Best wishes, Pete.
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If only we (as humanity) were wise enough to learn our lesson, we wouldn’t be in any of the 10 messes we’re in now… Your comment reminded me of The Giving Tree. Yes, it may be an extremely touching mother-child story, but it can be looked at as a sad lesson in this context, too?
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I’m reminded of bristlecone pines, a rare species (only found in the high elevations of California, Nevada, and Utah) that is protected by law. Raintree, the oldest one in Nevada, is over 3,000 years old. Despite the many switchbacks, the trail to Raintree, which is surrounded by younger bristlecones, is physically exhausting. One has to climb 1,529 feet in just 2.62 miles of trail (466 meters in just 4.2 km of trail). But it must be worth the effort—I’ve made the “pilgrimage” a half dozen times.
Older bristlecone pines can be viewed in the Ancient Bristlecone Pine Forest in California, which I’ve visited a number of times in the past despite being located roughly 200 miles (320 km) from Las Vegas. However, I haven’t been privileged to see Methuselah, a 4,853-year-old bristlecone pine that is the world’s oldest non-clonal tree, because its exact location is kept a closely guarded secret.
The tree in the photo at the top of this blog page must be a sequoia. Sequoias are neither the oldest nor the tallest species of tree, but they are magnificent. Standing, as I have on multiple occasions, in a grove of towering giants in Kings Canyon National Park or neighboring Sequoia National Park, one can’t help but be overcome with awe. Sequoias have weathered climate changes and forest fires throughout the centuries. Today, they are mostly threatened by the smog that drifts in from Southern California.
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Glad to hear about your tree hikes, David. And suitably envious that you have seen such wonderful trees.
Best wishes, Pete.
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Very interesting. Also sad when they become diseased and fall
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True, but at least that is natural, not man-made.
Cheers, Pete.
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Yes agreed. A lot of willow and alder being planted here as we’re near a flood plain…
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So very true, Pete. We have trees even older than that on our west coast, that’s only one reason why I worry about those fires every year. (of course my blogging friends that live out there are first).
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Those dry years on the west coast have indeed been tragic, GP. I hope all of your friends made it out safe.
Best wishes, Pete.
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Yes, thank goodness, all not touched!!
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I agree with you, Pete. When I visited Cape Town a few years ago we saw a 363 year old Saffron Pear tree in Company’s Garden [garden planted by the Dutch East India Company to supply the passing ships] and in Graaf Reinet on our recent road tour, we saw the oldest grape vine in South Africa, a Black Acorn grapevine planted by Charles Murray in 1870. Pretty amazing.
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We have an Oak in the back garden that is almost 300 years old. I respect that tree, and place it above myself in the sceme of things.
Best wishes, Pete.
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I remember you writing about that oak, its the one that drops acorns on your roof, isn’t it?
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That’s the one, Robbie. And tons of leaves too. 🙂
Best wishes, Pete.
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We have a very old oak not far from here – not that old, but more than 1000 years at least [https://wp.me/p107Dr-TL].
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Thanks for the link, Pit. The biggest Oak in our garden is almost 300 years old, but 1,000 years is marvellous.
Best wishes, Pete.
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You have such an old oak in your own garden?! How wonderful! 🙂
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Yes, and the one at the front is around 200 years old. They are both ‘protected’, and cannot be cut down. The house was built around them, and I am glad about that. 🙂
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WOW! 🙂
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Very moving
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Thanks, SD. Glad you think so.
Best wishes, Pete.
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A pleasure to read your characteristically thoughtful post, yielding many informative and wise comments from your followers. I wish we had a Swedish tree policy in our benighted land.
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Instead we have the construction of HS2, clearing historical woodland to make profits for companies building a railway line we don’t actually need. Sad indeed, dear Pippa.
Best wishes, Pete. xx
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I agree, in sadness and futile anger – my default position these days xx A pat, or healthy treat, whatever you judge fit, to Ollie from me, please.
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It puts things into perspective, doesn’t it?
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We are like ants compared to an elephant where old trees are concerned, Carolyn.
Best wishes, Pete.
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Our ‘yard’ is all natural scape – trees galore. But the big trees that that once grew in these mountains are long gone. I have newspaper articles that tell stories about how large the trees were. It breaks my heart.
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You do still have vast forests of mighty trees in North America, but for how much longer?
Best wishes, Pete.
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I hope a long, long time, Pete. But, for every house, every building, we all have accepted the sacrifice of what we took from the earth.
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I cannot bear to see trees cut down. The saddest sight for me is the recycling centre after Christmas, with unwanted and dried-out trees discarded by thoughtless people.
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At least Christmas trees are commercially grown and renewed. Taking ancient trees from established woodland is completely unnecessary now, in my opinion.
Best wishes, Pete.
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Absolutely
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Fascinating!
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A lesson from history, Darlene. I hope they learn it in the future.
Best wishes, Pete.
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I couldn’t agree more, Pete. In my part of the state, the developers are cutting down swaths of trees for more subdivisions, strip malls, and storage facilities. Like we need more of the latter.
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Our government has swept away ancient forests to build a rail link we didn’t need in the first place. History will judge those vandals, Liz.
Best wishes, Pete.
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Our ancient forests were swept away in the Colonial Era (Manifest Destiny) and all that rot. What are being cut down now are the forests that reclaimed the land over the early farmers overworked the land and abandoned it.
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There was a law protecting trees over here in Poland but it was abolished about 4 years ago and they have even started to cut down a world heritage site ancient forest, despite fines from the EU for doing so. I would hate the ruling government for this alone. but this is not their only crime!
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That’s outrageous indeed. That said, the Tories have destroyed thousands of heritage trees just to build the HS2 rail-link.
Best wishes, Pete.
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I heard about the destruction that the HS2 is causing, same the world over it seems 😦
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I can highly recommend reading ‘The Hidden Life of Trees’.
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/28256439-the-hidden-life-of-trees
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Thanks for the link, Peggy.
Best wishes, Pete.
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Here we have a law that you need permission to cut a tree even if it is in your own backyard.
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It is the same for me with the Oak trees here, Arlene.
Best wishes, Pete.
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I agree…I have this thing about tree cutting….with our Summers the shade they provide makes hot days bearable. chuq
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I love the shade from our large Oaks front and back, and it is actually illegal to cut them down.
Best wishes, Pete.
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My area developers are removing all natural habitat for the big lie of economic development. chuq
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There is more awareness now of the necessity to preserve biological diversity, not least in trees, but sadly, commercial imperatives still often override environmental concerns; I think the native American adage which ends by saying that you can’t eat money is increasingly pertinent. I thought it was amusing that the graphic in the photo refers to the coast on which Leif Ericson [sic] landed as “American”, but I suppose there wasn’t room for a more accurate description 😉 Cheers, Jon.
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Thanks, John. I think they managed to get the point across well in the graphic.
Best wishes, Pete.
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amazing and i so agree
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Thanks, Beth. I guessed you would feel the same.
Best wishes, Pete.
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Currently watching BBC & Attenboroughs Green Planet series, lots of old and ginormous trees in it. Amazing how long they last.
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Trees are wonderful things, and we should stop cutting down the ones we didn’t plant for timber.
Best wishes, Pete.
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Wow! That image truly brings home the magnificent life of a tree and what a travesty to fell it. Having worked in the timber trade I had difficulty at times in making people understand outside the business the difference between trees grown for commercial purposes and the illegal and horrendous felling of beautiful trees like this. In Sweden there is now more land to forest than for centuries, over 70%, all well-managed and when trees are cut down after about 40 years the area is immediately replanted with new tiny saplings.
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Thanks for adding that background, Annika. I agree that there is a huge difference between commercial planting, and cutting down such majestic trees.
Best wishes, Pete.
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