Supporting One Life One Tree

Giant Sequoia are the largest tree species in the world, with the biggest recorded being General Sherman in California, a whopping 275ft tall, 25ft wide, 714 tonnes in weight, and dating back to circa 700 BC, before the rise of the Roman Empire!

Just one Giant Sequoia can grow big enough in 250 years to capture the equivalent of the average UK citizen’s entire lifetime carbon footprint!

They are the world’s fastest growing coniferous tree species, pretty important given the rate we’re seeing our planet change.

They are some of the oldest living organisms on the planet, some dating back as far as 3500 years to the time the pyramids are thought to have been built, so when they lock up carbon, it is for a long time!

Their red bark, hence the name ‘Redwood’, can withstand fire, and can be as much as three feet thick! Other names they are known by include Sequoiadendron Giganteum and Wellingtonia.

They are known to be native to Northern America, but have at other times in history been all over the world, including the UK pre-Ice Age.

It is estimated that 95% of all Giant Sequoia and Coastal Redwoods were felled by loggers during the 19th and 20th centuries. What few remain are very precious.

They are now on the IUCN Endangered Species Red List. This is a consequence of felling, drought, super-heated wildfires (due to fire suppression causing fuel build up on the forest floor), bark beetle, and higher peak Summer temperatures.

The species was brought to the UK by the Victorians in the 1850’s, and many thousands live here today having thrived in our wet and moderate climate. They do not propagate in the UK due to a lack of wildfires needed to open their seed cones, so are completely non-invasive to native species.