The Methuselah pine is a real relic that is known to man. This plant got its name and popularity for a reason. The cultivar is listed in the Guinness Book of Records for one of its striking traits: an incredible desire for life.
The Methuselah Pine is one of the oldest trees on Earth
Origin story
In 1953, Edmund Schulman discovered an unusual tree: a huge pine tree. The miracle of nature seen so impressed the scientist that he decided to investigate the age in more detail. It turned out that he was about 4000 years old.
Age turned out to be the reason for the appearance of the name: Methuselah is a mythical character.
According to biblical texts, he was not only the forefather of mankind, but also the longest-living person: Methuselah was 969 years old at the time of his death. His name has even become a household name: the expression “Methuselah age” means extreme old age.
Description of the breed
Methuselah belongs to the intermountain bristlecone pine, Pinus longaeva. Due to a not too correct translation, this subspecies is confused with the bristlecone pine Pinus aristata. However, these two plants are very different from each other.
Main characteristics
- Place of distribution - North America. It grows mainly in the eastern region of the states of Arizona, Colorado, New Mexico and California, as well as throughout Nevada and Utah.
- The color of the bark is bright orange. Has deep cracks.
- The needles grow in bunches of 5-7 pieces, the color is dark green. The lifespan of one leaf is about 45 years.
- The normal height of an adult tree is 5 to 15 meters.
- The trunk diameter can reach up to 3.6 m.
Where is this pine tree
Today the location of the pine is carefully hidden
Shulman's article on the long-lived pine led to his great popularity. Pilgrims reached out to Methuselah, wishing not only to see the oldest known living creature on the planet, but also to pinch off a piece of it. So it was literally almost dismantled for souvenirs.
Because of this, today its location is not open to tourists. It is known that Methuselah is located in eastern California in the Inio National Forest.
It grows at a high altitude: about 3000 m above sea level. The approximate location is the area of the White Mountain range (White Mountain).
How do you manage to live so long
There is no exact answer to the question. Perhaps Methuselah was simply extremely lucky, and strong lightning did not hit him, he was not broken by gusty winds and a man did not manage to destroy him.
The pine subspecies Pinus longaeva itself is tacitly recognized as a strong and resilient tree. It is not uncommon for representatives of the breed to grow older than 2000 years.
However, scientists have their own theory about the stamina and secret of Methuselah's longevity: they believe that the tree lived for so many years thanks to the difficulties that it faced every day. The wind and drought hardened him. The well-known saying goes well here: “What does not kill us makes us stronger!”
Interesting Facts
- Methuselah is the oldest on the planet, according to the Guinness Book of Records. However, in 2012, another tree of the same species was discovered, which was approximately 200 years older. The name of this relic was not given, its location was not disclosed.
- Methuselah was first mentioned in National Geographic magazine in 1958.
- The exact age of the pine for 2019 is 4850 years.
- Scientists estimate that the seed sprouted around 2831 BC.
- Methuselah is a non-clonal tree, otherwise standing alone.
- Inyo National Forest is open to tourism, but you have to guess which plant is Methuselah.
- The tree does not get sick and does not die, you should not think so because of the abundance of dried up branches. This is a feature of the breed: some of the branches die off over time, and living tissue is connected to the roots by a narrow strip of cambium.
- The national park in which Methuselah grows is called Ancient Bristlecone Pine Forest. It is closed for most of the year due to unsuitable weather conditions for walking.
The oldest tree in the world | Methuselah
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Methuselah can be called one of the wonders of nature: his age can be difficult to believe. Do not grumble and be annoyed with the US authorities because they decided to hide the location of this relic tree from the public. They had reasons for that.