#Sequoiadendron

[jillraggett]

Plant of the Day

Tuesday 28 January 2025

Usually described as a large and long-lived evergreen specimen for a large park or garden Sequoiadendron giganteum (giant redwood, big tree, giant sequoia, mammoth tree, Sierra redwood, washingtonia, wellingtonia) these trees were planted many decades ago in a garden and churchyard either side of a road in this village in Essex, UK. They were a great feature as a view from a cafe window.

Jill Raggett

[drhoz]

#2757 - Sequoiadendron giganteum -Giant Sequoia 

AKA giant redwood, Sierra redwood or Wellingtonia. First described in 1853 by English botanist John Lindley as Wellingtonia gigantea, but that generic had already been used for an unrelated plant in the family Sabiaceae. In 1854 French botanist Joseph Decaisne put it in the same genus as the coast redwood, naming it Sequoia gigantea, but that name had been applied, wrongly, to the coast redwood in 1847. Also in 1854 American botanist Andreas Peter Winslow named it Washingtonia californica - American botanists being slightly pissed that an English botanist had named the tree after a English military hero - but this name too was invalid, since there was already a palm genus Washingtonia. In 1907, German botanist Carl Ernst Otto Kuntze got in on the fun and put it in the otherwise extinct genus Steinhauera, but that's dubious enough to also be invalid.

These nomenclatural oversights (to put it politely) were corrected in 1939 by American gymnosperm expert John Theodore Buchholz, who put it in the new genus Sequoiadendron to stand proudly alone (the other two in the genus extinct since the Miocene and the Cretaceous respectively).

A giant cypress native to the Sierra Nevada, and the most massive trees on Earth. The tallest known is 94.8 m (311 ft) tall, and the widest trunk diameter reached 8.8 m (28.9 ft). Ages are known to have exceeded 3200 years.

Giant sequoias are adapted to forest fires, with unusually resistant bark, and cones that open immediately after a fire. They're having difficulty reproducing in their remaining habitat due to the seeds only being able to grow successfully in full sun and in mineral-rich soils, free from competing vegetation. That said, new stands planted in the San Jacinto Mountains and elsewhere, after forest fires cleared out the competition, are doing quite well.

An endangered species with fewer than 80,000 remaining in its native California. Infuriatingly, logged for timber despite being so brittle it was only good for fence posts and toothpicks.

Once much more widely distributed, and reasonably common in North American and Eurasian conifer forests until the last ice age.

In Aotearoa, ornamental Sequoias have already reached trunk diameters of over 3 meters in 120 years. They have a long way to go.

Dunedin, Aotearoa New Zealand

[5-and-a-half-acres]

I grew sequoias from seed the spring one of my daughters was born 31 years ago. I kept this one because the leaves were bluish tinged.

It grows so fast.

[overdoso]

Você tem noção da dimensão de uma sequoia-gigante (Sequoiadendron giganteum)? É gigante mesmo.

[seanssaenz]

12/8/19 Sequoia National Park, California

-Sean S. 勝雲

[albatross133]

Endsleigh House

Lost in the mists of time. From A Page Tiring of Internet, I recently found a story I’d written on a website I’d created in the early 2000s. It was a story of my time at Endsleigh House, a former country residence/salmon-fishing lodge, once belonging to the Duchy of Bedford. The content was riddled with typos and grammatically all over the place, but I liked the story, so I set about rewriting…

[edsonjnovaes]

Sequoiadendron giganteum - Edição Aí vivo on-line

Edição: 31 mai 2025

[arboretum-index]

Name: Cupressus macrocarpa 'Lutea'Family: Cupressaceae Planting Date: 1880 Area: Walled Garden - Lower South Quarter Accession no: 1880/LSQ-13/44689/HA  Photograph Date: 19/09/24 08:07

Notes: Mother of the 'Castlewellan Gold'. Pictured behind Eucryphia and to the side of Sequoiadendron Giganteum.

[luvo27]

there are three kinds of redwoods and *checks list* a whole bunch of robins, which robins go to which trees?

anon, if you wanted my hand in marriage, you should have just said so. Let's assign each main continuity robin a redwood species based on vibes and life history traits!!!!

Dick Grayson: Giant Sequoia (Sequoiadendron giganteum)

giant sequoia has serotinous cones! serotiny being the term for cones that require fire in order to release their seeds, giant sequoia produce cones containing around a couple hundred seeds per cone and over A THOUSAND cones per tree!!! these cones can remain green and closed for up to 20 years without fire to dry them out, allowing them to release their seeds!! Fire serves another purpose, namely getting rid of competing species. Giant Sequoia is extremely shade intolerant, so if there are a lot of other trees providing shade, they're not going to do great. However, while fire has its benefits, too strong wildfires can spread into the tree crowns and incinerate both foliage and cones, killing the tree and preventing restoration.

Dick reads as giant sequoia for its shade intolerance and his tendency towards performance!! he doesn't know what to do with himself when he's not in a spotlight. Additionally, his tendency towards risk is found in the giant sequoia relationship with fire: the benefits of fire are more significant to the giant sequoia than its negatives, and it has several adaptations such as thick bark near its base and a tendency for foliage to grow far, far off the ground that make it fire resistant!! Lack of fire actually tends to be more harmful for giant sequoia than not. that being said, a risk is still a risk, and while Dick thrives in vigilantism, it has definitely had its drawbacks.

Jason Todd: Dawn Redwood (Metasequoia glyptostroboides)

this is where i confess that most of my research has been into giant sequoia so far, and a little bit into coast redwoods, and ive really only glanced over stuff about dawn sequoia because there's enough information to write a 180 page paper solely on giant sequoia reproductive ecology and. well! like. so all this research is purely for hobby purposes so.

so i chose Dawn Redwood for Jason because of its history: dawn redwood is fun because it's a fossil species, like the coelacanth!! It was first discovered through fossils before living specimens in china were identified as those same trees, around world war 2. dawn redwood is classified as an endangered species, but is grown in a lot of places, especially as a decoration!!!

I'm sure you can see where I'm going with this one. Jason, who spent a significant amount of time haunting the narrative before being discovered to be alive and the dawn redwood who occurred in fossil records before being identified alive? I like it :DDD

Tim Drake: Giant Sequoia (Sequoiadendron giganteum)

first, he's giant sequoia because that's what dick grayson is and he wants to be like dick grayson.

second, let's talk more about giant sequoia seed production because that's what i know about and so that's what i'm basing a lot of this on, okay? So, giant sequoia trees produce over a thousand (~1500 average) cones per tree, with ~200 seeds each, so a mature sequoia will produce ~300,000 seeds, and those 300,000 seed will be released when heat from a fire at the base of a tree dries that cone and allows it to open. Most of those seeds will die within the first two years. ~98.6% of them, actually.

This is about Tim's relationship with Robin to me!! First, he becomes Robin as the result of tragedy, with the deaths of Jason and then his mother, as the 300,000 seeds are released after a fire. 300,000 seeds released with the hope for germination, growth, and possibly becoming one of those great and wonderful trees, Tim is initially hopeful for what he will be able to do, so many people around him die, over and over and over again

oh and this is also another point for giant sequoia as the dick grayson species as well!!

Stephanie Brown: Coast Redwood (Sequoia sempervirens)

ok s the fic in question that im doing all this research for is a stephanie brown centric fic and so i have actually been thinking about all of these trees in relation to her already and she is all of them because she is my special girl. HOWEVER she is coast redwood!!!

so, coast redwood, while being fire resistant is not serotinous like the giant sequoia!! it typically grows taller than giant sequoia do as well: the tallest known tree in the world is a coast redwood named Hyperion!!! Coast Redwoods are prized for their lumber: it's spectacularly decay resistant!! also unlike the giant sequoia, coast redwood are very shade tolerant. Additionally, while they do produce seed bearing cones, coast redwoods can reproduce through sprouting, sending shoots up from cut and/or felled stumps. Disruption that kills shoots often ends up with more shoots being sent up than before.

Coast Redwood I chose for Stephanie because of their shared resilience. Stephanie is disrespected and overshadowed, she endures hardship, but she endures, thrives, grows tall, becomes Batgirl, and makes the mantle her own. Like the heartwood of this species, stephanie's heart too is decay resistant

Damian Wayne: Dawn Redwood (Metasequoia glyptostroboides)

For similar reasons as Jason: took a while longer than the others before it was discovered, BUT let's get a little more into the history! I mentioned that it's considered an endangered species but is grown in a wide variety of places for decoration. When live specimens were identified, seeds were collected and sent internationally to the US and Europe where they were able to be grown and studied. For Damian, I chose the Dawn Redwood because he too, was transplanted across countries. Also, it's significantly shorter than the other redwoods (giant sequoia and coast redwood can get ~300-400 feet tall, while dawn redwood grows to around 150 feet) and he's the youngest!!!

Duke Thomas: Coast Redwood (Sequoia sempervirens)

Like Stephanie, coast redwood has been chosen for Duke because of shared resilience!!! Additionally. And this I found out as I was double checking something as I was making this post. So, one feature of coast redwoods is that sometimes they form basal cavities. There's a pretty famous redwood attraction known as Shrine Tree, which you might already know: it's the one that you can drive your car through. That hole is what's known as a basal cavity, where when a coast redwood is damaged (usually from lightning/fire) the wood can rot through. While there are other redwood tree attractions you can drive a car through, shrine tree is the only one naturally formed. The thing about basal cavities. is that. they make a great home for bats. yeah. so. i know what im going to be looking into later. But I bring this up because!! since these coast redwoods are able to provide a home for bats as a result of hardship, it speaks to duke's community building tendencies for me!! his parents were jokerized, he has to endure hardship, he endures and thrives and builds and directs his community as a direct effect of that hardship!!! Like the shelter the basal cavity provides after disaster, Duke finds friendship and community through his struggles.

[theghostavocadoe]

Dummy's Guide to Weapons You Should Upgrade In Ever Crisis: The Boys (TM) Edition

Sephiroth:

Edged Wings: Big ice dmg

Blue Bramble: Big earth dmg

Dark Heavens: Big wind dmg

Tempest: Big water dmg

Withering Blaze: Big fire dmg

Blade of the Worthy: Big physical dmg

Nameless: Magic DEF down at a very, very low cost

Radiant Edge: Only really good if you pair him with another fire DPS like cloud, reduces fire def

Shinra Military Sword: Boosts wind dmg for himself

Angeal:

Stalwart Integrity: giant pdef and patk boost (for the whole team!!)

Tranquility: big water dmg

Volcanic Heat: big fire dmg

Type-91 Two-Hander: one of the very few weapon attacks with a diamond sigil

Sequoiadendron: good earth dmg

Gargantuan Monolith: good for tankgeal, taunts enemies and increases mdef

[plant-taxonomy-showdown]

Phylum Semi-Finals

Big Spiky Things vs Little Soft Things

Pinophyta (conifers) fun fact: Giant sequoias, Sequoiadendron giganteum, can grow over 300 feet tall, 30 feet in diameter, and live for over 3,000 years. They are the world's largest trees.

Bryophyta (mosses) fun fact: Mosses in the Sphagnum genus can hold 16-26 times as much water as their dry weight.

[iwilltrytobereasonable]

The point is there aren’t many deciduous trees around here and our redwoods are usually fine so the Dawn redwoods specifically look like they’re dead.

The sequoiadendron freeze in winter. They can handle cold. Also they dry out in the end of summer, and, y’know, the fire thing. They CAN handle a lot of change, but consistent moisture? All year? Down by the Bay I think there’s just no interruptions to the fungal encroachment on young trees that don’t have thick enough bark to be safe yet.

Something I'm quietly fascinated by is the phenomenon of giant redwoods in the UK.

The Victorians loved them and there are now about 500,000 juvenile giant redwoods here (versus about 60,000 mature ones in California). Because the British ones aren't mature yet, the tallest is about 55m tall.

So there are a bunch of British forests that currently look like this:

That will one day look a bit more like this:

[whereifindsanity]

flickr.com: Kyle Wicomb

Grizzly Giant - Yosemite National Park in California. Sequoiadendron giganteum. 209 feet high!

[maik-ol]

Tree hugger: Sona Art

The tree head is a Sequoia Senpervirens aka a Coastal Redwood.

Fun facts about Coastal Redwoods under cut

This species of trees are the tallest trees in the world and can get up to 380 feet tall and can get up to 30 feet wide around.

Many were cut down for lumber and because of just how long it takes for them to live and grow (around 1,200 to 2,200 years) most are now preserved in national parks and forests and they currently have a endangered conservation status.

This sona is based off the Sequoia Senpervirens but in the same Sequoioideae subfamily in californa is the Sequoiadendron giganteum aka the Giant Sequoia and these are related to Metasequoia glyptostroboides which grows in China.

Fun fact I’ve lived around both Coastal Redwoods and Giant Sequoias but currently I go out to hike in Coastal Redwoods every weekend, but Sequoia national forest (home to most of the still living Giant Sequoias) is where I spent a lot of my childhood

[takashi-10-facts]

Todays TEN FACT:

I condone pyromania :DD Arson has environmental benefits!*

*In fact, prescribed burnings have been practiced by native americans for centuries! Its done to control invasive AND NATIVE species. Some stuff, for example canada goldenrod (solidago canadensis) is a native plant that is pretty freaking aggressive. A lot of mints can be too, considering that family readily seeds and spreads by rhizome. While goldenrods, common milkweed (Asclepias syriaca) and bee balm (mondara fistulosa) are all GREAT NATIVE PLANTS they can out compete other amazing natives due to their aggression.

Native plants tend to have deeper root systems (not all of them do) which allows them to survive the burnings! In fact, some plants like fire weed (Chamerion angustifolium) and California Rose mallow (Hibiscus lasiocarpos var. occidentalis) need hot stratification to germinate! A lot of plants native to California are actually adapted to frequent burnings. Theres also giant sequoias (sequoiadendron giganteum) that have flame resistant bark, and manzanitas (Arctostaphylos manzanita) that after being burned will regrow from root systems that can be up to hundreds of years old! All of which are becoming increasingly sparse in the land they grew with due to habitat loss, urban sprawl, and dams being built... :(( A big part of the reason California suffers such bad wildfires is due to invasive Eucalyptus trees and monoculture plantations (especially those that plant birch) in a cheap attempt to save the environment. We need native biodiversity, something that prescribed burnings helps with!

So all in all, wildfires are actually HIGHLY beneficial from population control and removing invasive plants, helping some plants complete their life cycle, and the leftover ash giving great nutrients for our beloved native plants to grow!

If you want to learn more about California native plants, or perscribed burnings heres some sources.

(Sacramento food forest, he drops a lot of information on California native plants so i highly recommend checking this stoner out.)

DISCLAIMER: PERSCRIBED BURNS ARE ONLY TO BE DONE BY THOSE WHO ARE CERTIFIED. STAY SAFE!

[mutant-distraction]

Fred Blackburn

This is a 40 foot diameter tree. Largest diameter Sequoiadendron Giganteum I know. Third largest tree in the world by volume.

Grant Grove, Kings Canyon NP