Cedar of Lebanon, Royal Botanical Garden, Sydney, Australia
S 33° 51.797 E 151° 12.955
56H E 334969 N 6251570
The Cedar of Lebanon at the Royal Botanical Garden in Sydney, Australia was 125 years old when it was felled due to poor health.
Waymark Code: WM7RYH
Location: New South Wales, Australia
Date Posted: 11/28/2009
Views: 21
Copied from the sign near the tree ring display:
"FELLING OF THE CEDAR
This stump is all that remains of one of the grandest and best known trees in the Garden's collection - a magnificent Cedar of Lebanon, Cedrus Libani. This particular tree grew 15 m tall with a 20 m canopy and stood on this spot for 125 years. That it lived this long is testimony to the expert arboricultural skills of the staff. According to our arborists: "Cedars of Lebanon prefer the cold wet mountainous regions of Lebanon - rather than coastal Sydney with its erratice rain patterns and warm climate. This tree had been in declining health for many years and despite our efforts to remove any deadwood, establish a mulch pit, apply friendly fugi and give it extra watering, we were unable to save it. The shortness of its life can be attributed to not being in its ideal climate, being stressed by Sydney's drought conditions and succumbing to Armillaria Root Rot. In the wild, the oldest trees are believed to live up to 2000 years." Historical records of this tree's age are poor yet when it was felled the growth rings stood out well. Three independent assessments were made to count the rings and unanimously it was determined that the tree started life around 1882."
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Here is a great website for learning about the study of tree rings:
(University of Arizona, Tree Ring Studies)
(
visit link)