Disturbances such as fire benefit giant sequoia, promoting growth of the ancient giants and creating conditions for regeneration of young trees.Through our Research Grants Program we have learned that: There is still so much we do not know about these enormous giants and their surrounding forests. To help protect giant sequoia forests, we must study them. “There is something wonderfully attractive in this king tree, even when beheld from afar, that draws us to it with indescribable enthusiasm its superior height and massive smoothly rounded outlines proclaiming its character in any company and when one of the oldest attains full stature on some commanding ridge it seems the very god of the woods.” John Muir, renowned naturalist and extensive explorer of the Sierra Nevada, was in awe of these giants. You can learn more about our conservation work by visiting our protect and restore pages. We’re the only organization with the type of comprehensive approach needed to ensure that forests that take one thousand years to grow will be here for another thousand years. Our conservation work depends on close partnerships with scientists, land managers, industries and other land conservation organizations. We have helped protect redwood forests and surrounding land totaling more than 200,000 acres (about the size of New York City). Since 1918, Save the Redwoods League has been working to protect, restore and connect people to our remaining redwood forests. You can learn more about the impacts of fire on our Giant Sequoia and Fire page.ĭeer and other large mammals live in the forest. Fire suppression policies in recent years have increased the growth of dense, brushy undergrowth and reduced the likelihood of giant sequoia regeneration. Periodic wildfires help to produce all of these conditions and are therefore very beneficial to the reproduction of sequoia trees. Sequoia seedlings need nutrient-rich soil, lots of sunlight, and an area free of competition from other plants to thrive. Fire is an important element of the giant sequoia forest. They are too massive to be blown over in the wind, and their bark is thick and rich in tannins, which protect them against fire and insect damage.
Giant sequoia are generally well able to protect themselves against their natural threats, allowing them to survive for thousands of years. Because they need well-drained soil, walking around the base of giant sequoia can cause them harm, as it compacts the soil around their shallow roots and prevents the trees from getting enough water. To thrive, giant sequoia require a great amount of water, which they primarily receive from the Sierra snowpack that accumulates over the winter months and soaks into the ground when it melts. Giant sequoia grow so large because they live a very long time and grow quickly. Sequoia are found at elevations of 1,400–2,150 meters (4,600–7,050 feet) and can live to be 3,000 years old! Some of the largest surviving giant sequoia groves can be seen in Sequoia and Kings Canyon National Parks, Giant Sequoia National Monument, Calaveras Big Trees State Park and Yosemite National Park. Once Sequoia National Park was established, tourism brought a better incentive to protect the trees. The leftover wood was used mainly for shingles and fence posts, or even for matchsticks, and therefore had little monetary value. The trees would often shatter when they hit the ground because of their brittleness and great weight. Some sequoia groves were logged in the late 1800s and early 1900s, but not very successfully. Its stump was so large it was used as a dance floor. One of these trees, named the Discovery Tree, was unfortunately felled in 1853. The first widely publicized discovery of the giant sequoia was in 1852, at Calaveras Big Trees State Park. The northernmost sequoia grow in Placer County in Tahoe National Forest, and the southernmost groves live in Giant Sequoia National Monument. Today, the last giant sequoia on Earth live on land about the size of Cleveland (48,000 acres), in about 73 groves scattered along the western slopes of the Sierra Nevada. The oldest known redwood fossils date back more than 200 million years to the Jurassic period. Redwoods once grew throughout the Northern Hemisphere. Also known as Sierra redwoods, the largest of these trees that live in California’s rugged Sierra Nevada mountain range, could hold a stadium full of people. It’s hard to believe that a living thing can be so enormous and old. To learn more, visit our Redwood Forest Facts page.īeing dwarfed by Earth’s most massive tree, the giant sequoia, fills you with wonder. Privately owned giant sequoia forest: 1,200 acresĪbout the size of Golden Gate Park, San Francisco, California
Along the western slopes of the Sierra Nevada
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