CURIOSITY: KING OF THE FOREST?

The General Sherman Tree is the largest surviving sequoia in the forest. Actually, it's the largest surviving tree in the world. At its base, the trunk has a diameter of 36 feet (10 meters) and a circumference of more than 100 feet (30 meters). That means it would take more than 17 average adults holding hands to surround the entire thing.


In 2006, the tree lost its largest branch in a storm. At six feet (1.8m) in diameter and 100 feet (30.5m) in length, the branch alone was larger than most entire trees. Don't take that to mean that the tree is in trouble, however. Researchers believe that breaking off branches is a natural survival mechanism to prevent the tree from breaking in powerful winds.

But the General wasn't always the biggest tree in the world. Until 1854, that honor belonged to the Mother of the Forest tree, which grew in what is now Calaveras Big Trees State Park. But some overeager tree fans decided that the best thing to do was to strip the giant of all its bark, then shape that bark back into a tree and send it on a world tour. It was a great way to give people in England a sense of how big the tree was—and also a great way to condemn it to death. The story does have a silver lining, however. The death of the Mother of the Forest and her companion The Mammoth Tree sparked such strong emotions that they led to the modern conservation movement. A greener future is better for all of us, sequoias included.

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