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Where to see the world's most famous trees

18/09/2012
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The Telegraph

1. CEDARS OF GOD

Lebanon cedar

This small forest has been listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site since 1998. The 400 or so trees are all that remains of a once extensive forest with timber prized by Herod, Alexander the Great and Julius Caesar. The Cedars of Lebanon are mentioned in the Bible 70 times, and in the Epic of Gilgamesh.

  1. EL ÁRBOL DEL TULE

Montezuma cypress

With a trunk circumference of 36.2 metres, El Árbol del Tule is thought to be the stoutest tree in the world. It is found in Santa Maria del Tule, in the Mexican state of Oaxaca.

  1. THE SURVIVOR TREE

American elm

This 100-year-old elm stood in the shadow of the Murrah Building blown up in the 1995 Oklahoma City bombing. The force from the blast badly damaged the tree, but it suprisingly survived and is now an important part of the Oklahoma City National Memorial.

  1. METHUSELAH

Great Basin Bristlecone Pine

Methuselah is found in the White Mountains of Inyo County in California and is thought to be the world's oldest living "non-clonal" organism. It is named after the Biblical figure Methuselah, who is said to have lived for 969 years. The tree's age is estimated at 4,845 years.

  1. MAJOR OAK

Oak

One of Britain's most famous trees, Major Oak - in the heart of Sherwood Forest - has a circumference of 10 metres and is thought to be up to 1,000 years old. Its odd shape and huge size have attracted visitors for generations. According to legend, one of those included Robin Hood, who was rumoured to have taken hidden under its branches.

  1. OLD TJIKKO

Norway Spruce

The oldest living "individual clonal" tree, at 9,550 years, Old Tjikko is just five metres tall and is found in the Dalarna province of Sweden. It was discovered by Leif Kullman, a professor at Umea University, who chose to name it after his late dog.

  1. QUEEN ELIZABETH OAK

Oak

Legend has it that the future Queen Elizabeth was sat under this tree, eating an apple, when she was told that her sister Mary had died, and she was the new monarch. The tree is found in the grounds of Hatfield House in Hertfordshire.

  1. Last week authorities in Japan cut down a pine tree at Rikuzentakata in a bid to preserve it. The tree had been part of a coastal forest, but was the only one left standing after last year's tsunami struck the country. It will be cut into sections, given anti-decay treatment, reassembled using a carbon spine, and replanted in the same spot. The whole process could take around six months.

Here we look at other famous trees around the world.

  1. GENERAL SHERMAN

Giant sequoia

The largest known single stem tree on Earth, General Sherman is found in the Sequoia National Park in Tulare County, California. It is 83.8 metres tall, with a diametre of 7.7 metres, and is estimated to be between 2,300 and 2,700 years old. It is named after the American Civil War general William Tecumseh Sherman.

  1. JAYA SRI MAHA BODHI

Sacred fig

The Jaya Sri Maha Bodhi in Anuradhapura, Sri Lanka, is said to be the southern branch from the historical Bodhi tree at Bodh Gaya under which Buddha attained Enlightenment. It was planted in 288 BC, making it the oldest known human-planted tree in the world. It is one of the most sacred relics in Buddhism.

  1. STOKE GABRIEL

Yew

Stood outside the Church of St Mary and St Gabriel in Stoke Gabriel, Devon, this tree is thought to be Britain's oldest at around 1,000 years. According to local lore, if you walk backwards seven times around the yew you will be granted a wish.

  1. THE STRANGLER FIGS

Silk cotton/strangler fig

One of the most popular temples in Cambodia's Angkor Wat complex, Ta Prohm is best known for the trees which dominate its ruins. The temple was used in the film Tomb Raider.

  1. THE LONE CYPRESS

Monterey Cypress

This much-photographed tree is found on 17-Mile Drive, a scenic road on the Monterey Peninsula in California. It is the official symbol of Pebble Beach.

  1. THIMMAMMA MARRIMANU

Banyan

The branches of the 200-year-old Thimmamma Marrimanu are spread over five acres, earning it a mention in the 1989 Guinness Book of Records as the world's biggest tree. Locals say that childless couples who worship in its shadow will conceive the following year.

  1. THE COTTON TREE

Stood in the middle of Freetown, Sierra Leone, The Cotton Tree has been an important local symbol since the founding of the city in 1792. Sierra Leonians still pray and make offerings to ancestors beneath its branches.

  1. CHANDELIER TREE

Redwood

The Chandelier Tree is a novel tourist attraction in Leggett, California. A 6ft hole was cut into its trunk in the 1930s to allow car to drive through.

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