How old is the General Sherman tree?
THE famous General Sherman tree is known as the largest living single-stem tree on Earth.
The behemoth sequoia is located in the Giant Forest of Sequoia National Park in Tulare County, California.
How old is the General Sherman tree?
Known as the largest current living tree, General Sherman is believed to be around 2,300 to 2,700 years old.
While General Sherman is the largest currently living tree, it is not the largest historically recorded tree.
The General Sherman was named after the American Civil War general, William Tecumseh Sherman.
The Lindsey Creek tree, with more than 90,000 cubic feet, almost twice the volume of General Sherman, reportedly felled in 1905 due to a storm.
Why was the General Sherman tree wrapped in fire-resistant blankets?
As wildfires continue to devastate California's Sierra Nevada, firefighters wrapped the base of the General Sherman in a fire-resistant blanket as they tried to save the famous tree.
The shiny material that helps suppress flames, commonly used to protect structures, is rarely applied to natural features.
The aluminum wrapping can withstand intensive heat for short periods.
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Still, crews fighting the KNP Complex fire in the Sequoia national park said they are doing everything possible to protect the iconic trees.
“It is really indicative of what a special priority the iconic monarch sequoias of the Giant Forest are for the parks and for the incident management team,” said fire spokesperson Rebecca Paterson.
The KNP Complex fire - which consists of two lightning-sparked blazes burning together - forced the evacuation of the park this week.
The Colony Fire, one of two burning in Sequoia National Park, was expected to reach the Giant Forest, a grove of 2,000 sequoias, at some point within days, fire officials said.
The wrapping was applied only to the base of the tall trees that stretch hundreds of feet into the sky.
“It is just being applied by firefighters on the ground, so it is not possible to put it 100 feet up or anything,” Paterson said.
“The idea is to keep the ground fire from getting at the tree where it is most likely to burn, which is close to the ground.”
However, despite taking extra precaution, the fire didn't grow significantly on September 16, as a layer of smoke reduced its spread in the morning, fire spokeswoman Katy Hooper said.
“The good news is that today, in particular, fire behavior has been fairly moderate, so we are not seeing a lot of canopy fire or great, big dramatic runs in the fire,” Paterson said on September 17.
“It has been a fairly slow, backing, creeping spread.”
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