Facts About Trees

• Trees receive an estimated 90% of their nutrition from the atmosphere and only 10% from the soil.

• Trees renew our air supply by absorbing carbon dioxide and producing oxygen.

• Trees lower air temperature by evaporating water in their leaves.

• A tree does not reach its most productive stage of carbon storage for about 10 years.

• One of the tallest soft wood trees is the General Sherman, a giant redwood sequoia of California. General Sherman is about 275 ft or 84 m high with a girth of 25 ft or 8 m.

• Dendrochronology is the science of calculating a tree’s age by its rings.

• A mature birch tree can produce up to 1 million seeds per year.

• Trees receive an estimated 90% of their nutrition from the atmosphere and only 10% from the soil.

• Trees grow from the top, not from the bottom as is commonly believed. A branch’s location on a tree will only move up the trunk a few inches in 1000 years.

• The largest area of forest in the tropics remains the Amazon Basin, amounting to 81.5 million acres.

• Tree leaves help trap and remove tiny particles of soot and dust which otherwise damages human lungs.

• By creating shade, trees moderate temperatures both globally and in the micro-climates of cities and counties.

• Trees create buffers to reduce noise.

• The presence of trees in urban neighborhoods has been linked to less crime.

• Tree roots stabilize soil and prevent erosion.

• The cottonwood tree seed is the seed that stays in flight the longest. The tiny seed is surrounded by ultra-light, white fluff hairs that can carry it on the air for several days.

• Tree rings provide precise information about environmental events, including volcanic eruptions.

• One acre of trees removes up to 2.6 tons of carbon dioxide each year.

• Trees improve water quality by slowing and filtering rain water, as well as protecting aquifers and watersheds.