Tree Species Life Expectancy Apple Trees (Malus) 50 to 80 years. Ash Trees (Fraxinus) 350 years. Aspen Trees (Populus tremuloides) 50 to 60 years (for individual stems) Cherry Trees (Prunus avium) 30 to 40 years (some reach up to 250 years)
Trees can live anywhere from less than 100 years to more than a few thousand years depending on the species. However, one species in particular outlives them all. The Great Basin Bristlecone Pine (Pinus longaeva) has been deemed the oldest tree in existence, reaching an age of over 5,000 years old.
Oak and sweet chestnut can both live for over 1,000 years and are ancient at 400 years. Other trees have shorter lifespans - like beech, which becomes ancient at 225 years - but they still far outstrip those of humans and most animals. Ancient trees are essential to a healthy environment.
In eastern California, a Great Basin bristlecone pine (Pinus longaeva) known as Methuselah has long been considered Earth's oldest living thing. According to tree-ring data, Methuselah is 4,853 years old — meaning it was well established by the time ancient Egyptians built the pyramids at Giza.
This 16-foot tall Norway Spruce, situated in the scrubby Fulufjället Mountains of Sweden, is an incredible 9,550 years old! This is the world's oldest single-stemmed clonal tree. The actual tree trunk itself is only a few hundred years old – it is the root system that has stayed alive for nearly 10,000 years.
Since 1957, this bristlecone pine has held the title of the world's oldest living tree. Methuselah was discovered by famed tree researcher Edmund Schulman, a scientist at the Laboratory of Tree-Ring Research at the University of Arizona.
Old Tjikko is a 9,550-year-old Norway Spruce tree, located in Fulufjället National Park in Sweden. It stands as the oldest known living tree in the world and has become a symbol of durability, sustainability, and regeneration.
Methuselah, a Bristlecone Pine is Thought to be the Oldest Living Organism on Earth. The Inyo National Forest is home to many bristlecone pines, thought to be the oldest living organisms on Earth.
Trees can live anywhere from a few dozen years to more than several millennia depending on its species and environmental conditions.
What is the first true tree? The first recognized true trees (strict definition), which produced wood and increased the girth of the trunk was Archaeopteris. This plant is from an extinct group called the progymnosperms. Archaeopteris had a woody trunk and side branches similar to a conifer tree.
Unlike vertebrates, plant cells do not age. A rooted cutting from an ancient tree is identical, on the cellular level, to a young plant. In fact, even in old trees, the live cells—leaves, roots and cambium—are young. Old leaves fall off, and new leaves grow.
Trees can't just live on their own; they would die. Like people, trees need a diverse community of other living things that provide them food, shelter, and water.
Sharks have been around for hundreds of millions of years, appearing in the fossil record before trees even existed.
The short answer. Count the tree's annual growth rings. To make your measurement more accurate, compare a core or cross section of the tree trunk to others from the surrounding area, to account for missing or extra rings.
Generally, most maple trees will live around 80-120 years if they are grown in optimal conditions with plenty of sunlight, water and nutrients. When maple trees experience extreme weather conditions or poor soil quality, their longevity may be shortened significantly.
1. The oldest individual tree in the world: Methuselah tree. Methuselah is a Great Basin bristlecone pine (pinus longaeva) that is estimated to be between 4,800-5,000 years old.
National LEB figures reported by national agencies and international organizations for human populations are estimates of period LEB. Human remains from the early Bronze Age indicate an LEB of 24. In 2019, world LEB was 73.3.
In short, plants possess a highly developed, conscious root brain that works much as ours does to analyze incoming data and generate sophisticated responses. But what is more, the plant brain that emerges always fits its functional shape to the environment in which it appears.
Oldest Known Material
Discovered in 2001 on a sheep ranch in a part of Western Australia known as the Jack Hills, this ancient zircon crystal is the oldest known material formed on Earth. Scientists say they've dated the ancient crystal to about 4.4 billion years ago.
The tubeworm Escarpia laminata that lives in deep sea cold seeps regularly reaches the age of between 100 and 200 years, with some individuals determined to be more than 300 years old. Some may live for over 1,000 years.
The world record for the fastest growing plant belongs to certain species of the 45 genera of bamboo, which have been found to grow at up to 91 cm (35 in) per day or at a rate of 0.00003 km/h (0.00002 mph). According to the RHS Dictionary of Gardening, there are approximately 1,000 species of bamboos.
Sequoia and Kings Canyon National Parks boast many of the world's largest trees by volume. The General Sherman Tree is the largest in the world at 52,508 cubic feet (1,487 cubic meters). The General Grant Tree is the second largest at 46,608 cubic feet (1,320 cubic meters).
The Oldest Family Trees
While the Confucius family tree carries the title of the biggest one, the Lurie family is known as the oldest one in the world. Its history traces back to 1037 BC. According to the records, the family lineage starts from the 3rd king of the United Monarchy of Israel and Judah called King David.
It remains the longest-lived tree definitively documented. Prometheus met its end when geographer Donald R. Currey, who was studying ice age glaciology and had been granted permission to take core samples from pines in the park, cut it down (also with permission).