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The giant sequoia is native to the groves on the western slopes of the Sierra Nevada mountain range of California. It grows to an average height of 50-85 m, with trunk diameters ranging from 6-8 m. The giant sequoia is listed as an endangered species by the IUCN, with fewer than 80,000 remaining in its native California.

Range and Habitat

The natural distribution of the giant sequoia is restricted to a limited area of the western Sierra Nevada. The trees occur in 81 scattered groves that cover a total area of only 144.16 km² (35,620 acres). Nowhere does the species grow in pure stands, although in a few small areas the stands approach a pure condition. The seeds grow successfully only in full sun and in mineral-rich soils free from competing vegetation. Seedlings that germinate in moist needle humus in spring die as the duff dries in summer. Fires do not typically kill the trees but remove competing thin-barked species and aid regeneration.

The Giant Sequoia

General Sherman, in the Giant Forest of Sequoia National Park, is by volume the largest known living single-stem tree on Earth. Its estimated bole volume is 1,487 cubic meters. In 1931, following comparisons with the nearby General Grant Tree, General Sherman was identified as the largest tree in the world. The tree was named after the American Civil War general William Tecumseh Sherman. The oldest known giant sequoia is 3,200-3,266 years old.

Giant sequoia bark is fibrous, furrowed, and may be 90 cm (3 ft) thick at the base of the columnar trunk. The sap contains tannic acid, which provides significant protection from fire damage. The bark is unusually fire resistant, and the cones will normally open immediately after a fire. Wood from mature giant sequoias is fibrous and brittle, and it is unsuitable for construction and used for fence posts or match sticks. The wood is resistant to decay: a nearly complete log found south of the Nelder Grove gave a radiocarbon date of 10,000 years. The leaves are evergreen, awl-shaped, 3-6 mm long, and arranged spirally on the shoots. The seed cones are 4-7 cm long and mature in 18-20 months, though they typically remain green and closed for as long as 20 years.

The Coast Redwood

The coast redwood is the sole living species of the genus Sequoia in the cypress family, Cupressaceae. The species has produced the tallest living trees on Earth, reaching up to 116.22 m in height. Its bark can be very thick, up to 35 cm, and quite soft and fibrous. Coast redwoods are resistant to insect attack, fungal infection, and rot. These properties are conferred by concentrations of terpenoids and tannic acid in redwood leaves, roots, bark, and wood. The trunk is remarkably straight and the crown is conical. The thick, fibrous bark is extremely fire-resistant, and the trees contain little flammable pitch or resin. The tallest living tree is Hyperion, which stands in Redwood National Park and measures 116.22 m. In Latin, sempervirens means "ever green" or "everlasting".

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