The Tallest Trees in the World

 

The tallest trees in the world seem like real giants of nature. They grow silently but inexorably, reaching dizzying heights, even over the course of centuries, sometimes millennia. Establishing their age is really difficult, without cutting their trunk, thus putting an end to their life. They are spectacular and scenographic representatives of the plant world and make men feel really tiny compared to their grandeur.

Have you ever wondered which are the tallest trees in the world? We’ve done a little research for you to compile this list. Beware of neck pain as you will have to extend it to look up really high!

15. The General Grant Tree – 81.5 meters

The General Grant Tree is the largest redwood tree in the General Grant Grove section of Kings Canyon National Park in California. It’s also the second-largest tree in the world following another sequoia, The General Sherman Tree. Its name was assigned to it in 1867 in honor of General Ulysses Grant, who was part of the Union Army that participated in the American Civil War. Later, he also became the 18th President of the United States of America. The honors this tree has received don’t end there. In 1956, it was awarded the title of National Shrine by President Dwight Eisenhower, in memory of the fallen in war.

Location: California, USA
Estimated age: about 1650 years
Species: Giant Sequoia (Sequoiadendron giganteum)

14. Boole Tree – 81.9 meters

Located in the Sequoia National Forest, this tree is still the 6th tallest giant sequoias in the world. These trees are unique in the world and this particular, millennia-old, specimen has a circumference of 24.3 meters.

Location: California, USA
Estimated age: 2100 years
Species: Giant Sequoia (Sequoiadendron giganteum)

13. Euclid Tree – 83.1 meters

It was recognized and measured in 1989 by the “great tree hunter” Wendell Flint with the help of Bob Walker. Flint later discovered that this tree is also the 17th largest tree in the world by its volume.

Location: California, USA
Estimated age: /
Species: Giant Sequoia (Sequoiadendron giganteum)

12. The General Sherman Tree – 83.8 meters

A real colossus, this imposing example of giant sequoia is one of the tallest in the world. It holds the record of the largest tree and living being on Earth, with approximately 1487 meters and a total weight of approximately 1.910 tons. Its name was given to it in 1879 by the naturalist James Wolverton after the American Civil War general, William Tecumseh Sherman.

Location: California, USA
Estimated age: between 2.300 and 2.700 years
Species: Giant Sequoia (Sequoiadendron giganteum)

11. The Hart Tree – 84.7 meters

The tree is named after Michael Hart, the man who discovered and measured it in 1880. It is located in Sierra Nevada, California, and was thought to be the fourth largest sequoia in the world. However, to date, it ranks in 24th place.

Location: California, USA
Estimated age: /
Species: Giant Sequoia (Sequoiadendron giganteum)

10. Mendocino Tree – 112.2 meters

Between December 1996 and August 2000, the tallest tree at Montgomery Woods, called the Mendocino, was the tallest tree in the world. It was displaced from the top position by several taller trees discovered at Humboldt Redwoods State Park and, later, at Humboldt County’s Redwood National Park. This tree is one of the dozens of similar specimens of the same wood, but it’s neither marked nor distinguished to remain protected from visitors and tourists.

Location: California, USA
Estimated age: 1300 years
Species: Sequoia sempervirens

9. Paradox – 112.56 meters

Paradox held the record for height before the discovery of the Mendocino tree. The naturalist Michael W. Taylor discovered this tree and named it Paradox because its trunk was paradoxically very narrow compared to its height.

Location: California, USA
Estimated age: 1180 years
Species: Sequoia sempervirens

8. Rockefeller – 112.6 meters

The Rockefeller tree is also known by the names Tall Tree, Tallest Tree, Fourth Tallest Tree, and Jerry Partain Tree. It was named by John D. Rockefeller who, between 1926 and 1929, donated $2 million to the Save the Redwoods League in order to purchase the wooded area and prevent it from being used by the Pacific Lumber Company. In 1931, the area of around 37.8 sq km, called Rockefeller Forest, became the main core of Humboldt Redwoods State Park.

Location: California, USA
Estimated age: 2200 years
Species: Sequoia sempervirens

7. Lauralin – 112.62 meters

 

This tree was discovered at the South Fork Eel River in Humboldt, California, by the naturalists Paul Zinke and Al Strangenburger in 1966. It’s a majestic specimen of Sequoia sempervirens that distinguishes by its reddish color and downward-looking leaves.

Location: California, USA
Estimated age: 1600 years
Species: Sequoia sempervirens

6. Orion Tree – 112.63 meters

Despite its enormous size, it’s difficult to identify it and its exact location remains unknown. It’s thought that this tree grows around 12 meters per year.

Location: California, USA
Estimated age: 1830 years
Species: Sequoia sempervirens

5. The National Geographic Society – 112.71 meters

When this tree was discovered in 1994, it was declared the tallest tree in the world and held the record for a year. It’s located at the Redwood Creek Tributary although the exact location remains unknown.

Location: California, USA
Estimated age: about 2000 years
Species: Sequoia sempervirens

4. Stratosphere Giant – 113.11 meters

This tree was discovered in July 2000 when it measured 112.34, thus earning the record as the tallest tree in the world, which it maintained until 2006. To date, the height has increased further, exceeding the “stratospheric” 113 meters, although it’s not enough to be in the first place on the list.

Location: California, USA
Estimated age: 1500 years
Species: Sequoia sempervirens

3. Icarus – 113.14 meters

Icarus is the third tallest tree in the world and was discovered on the same day as Helios (in the second position), within hours, by naturalists Chris Atkins and Michael Taylor. In the book in which their discovery is told, he tells of how the tree had a sunburnt tip. However, this detail doesn’t help identify it since there are hundreds of trees with the top in those conditions in the same area.

Location: California, USA
Estimated age: over 2000 years
Species: Sequoia sempervirens

2. Helios – 114.58 meters

Helios was discovered by Chris Atkins and Michael Taylor on July 1st, 2006 at Redwood National Park. Since its discovery, this tree has grown more, so its height is slightly less than the tree in the first place. The tree’s position has been kept secret for some time, but today it’s known that instead of being in a wood, it is positioned on top of a hill.

Location: California, USA
Estimated age: 2040 years
Species: Sequoia sempervirens

1. Hyperion – 115.61 meters

The tallest tree in the world can only be a Sequoia sempervirens and can only be found in Northern California. Although it is the tallest tree in the world, it does not hold the first position in terms of volume. Naturalists Chris Atkins and Michael Taylor discovered it on August 25, 2006, in a remote area of ​​Redwood National and State Parks. Some researchers claim that the damage on its top prevented the tree from growing further and reaching a record height of 115.8 meters.

Location: California, United States
Estimated age: 1260 years
Species: Sequoia sempervirens