Myths, traditions, inspiration, culture, religion, history and many other aspects of human life - trees always appear in all these areas. Trees will only get better if people disappear from the face of the Earth, but people without trees will have a hard time. Trees absorb carbon dioxide, produce oxygen, prevent soil erosion, provide shelter on hot days; trees are building materials, energy and even food. Trees are just amazing! Well, your attention is presented with a list of the rarest and most unusual trees of our planet.

Eucalyptus rainbow

The trunks of these trees look like they were painted by a skilled graffiti artist, but in fact, the bold colors of the bark are a completely natural phenomenon. The bark layers of this eucalyptus species fall off into different times year, exposing the "underneath" from bright green to orange flowers. These beauties grow up in tropical forests, and mainly in the southern part Pacific Ocean. The tree reaches a height of 75 meters, and a trunk diameter of up to 2.4 meters. Amazingly photogenic stuff!

bodhi tree

In Buddhism, this tree is known for the fact that during meditation about 2500 years ago under it, Prince Gautama achieved enlightenment and became a Buddha. That particular tree has not survived, however, from its seed a tree was grown in Anuradhapura in Sri Lanka. Then that tree was destroyed, but a new tree was grown from the sprout, which was cut down again in the 6th century. After that, a tree was again grown from the next sprout, which stood steadfast right up to 1876, but it was also knocked down by a strong storm. A new sprout was planted in the Indian city of Bodh Gaya, and today this tree is the most important of the four Buddhist pilgrimage sites.

Major Oak

The tale of Robin Hood is associated with this tree, remember? But these are all legends. And the major oak really exists and is located near the English village of Edwinston, in Sherwood Forest, in Nottinghamshire. This tree weighs about 23 tons, it is about 10 meters in girth, and it’s scary to even hint about age - the great oak is about 800-1000 years old! In a 2002 poll, this oak was voted "Britain's Favorite Tree", and in 2014 it was "England's Tree of the Year".

cotton tree

What is the connection between a tree in the capital of Sierra Leone and the American War of Independence? Well, according to legend, this "Cotton Tree" became famous when a group of former African-American slaves who gained freedom during the war arrived in this area in 1792 and founded Freetown, the current capital of Sierra Leone. And what about the tree? And here's the thing: these dark-skinned fighters landed on the shore and immediately next to this giant tree held a thanksgiving service for salvation and freedom. Today a huge tree can be seen in the old part of Freetown near the building Supreme Court- it is still considered a symbol of the capital. To this day, locals pray next to the tree and make offerings in the name of peace and prosperity. This was especially true during the civil war in Sierra Leone in 1991-2002.

Methuselah tree

Methuselah is one of the oldest trees on Earth. Scientists suggest that a tree sprout broke through the soil in 2831 BC - that is, the tree is already 4845 years old (as of 2015)! This tree grows in national forest Inyo, in California, at an altitude of more than 3000 meters above sea level, somewhere in the mountain ranges. Why somewhere? Well, it will be extremely difficult for an ordinary tourist to find this tree: the exact location of the tree is not disclosed in order to prevent vandalism.

Tule tree

This tree with a surprisingly thick trunk is located in the square next to the church in the town of Santa Maria del Tule, in the Mexican state of Oaxaca. So: this Thule has the thickest trunk among all the trees in the world! Can you imagine that the base of the tree is 36.2 meters in circumference and almost 12 meters in diameter? However, this thickness is explained by the fact that the Thule trunk is several trunks of thinner trees fused together. By the way, there are rumors that this is also the oldest tree on Earth, but the exact age of the tree is unknown, so they give it from 1200 to 3000 years, and someone foaming at the mouth assures that the Thule tree is already more than 6 thousand years old!

Tree General Sherman

In terms of volume, General Sherman, a relative of the sequoia, is the largest tree on Earth. Its height is almost 84 meters, and its age is about 2300-2700 years. A tree is the largest and heaviest living organism on our planet. By the way, this is not the most high sequoia. And they named this plant, which grows in California, in honor of General civil war William Tecumseh Sherman.

Baobab

The baobabs look like they were trimmed with their huge scissors by a very creative gardener, however, in this case, only evolution had a “hand in hand”. These large trees can grow up to 15-16 meters tall and are the natural equivalent of water towers - not without reason they grow in the most arid regions, such as mainland Africa, the Arabian Peninsula, Madagascar and Australia. Baobab fruit powder can be used for food, such as making bread, and the leaves are used for medicinal purposes.

Today we want to bring to your attention the most unusual trees growing on our earth. As you know, the most common plant on our planet that deserves a special place in our lives is a tree. There are more than 100,000 species of them growing on our land. Where and how a person just does not use it, but we pay attention to the trees around us only if they differ in some way from their neighbors either in size or in bizarre shapes or flowers and fruits.

• Dragon tree (Dracaenacinnabari) or more precisely cinnabar-red dracaena. It grows on the island of Socotra. Outwardly, this miracle of nature resembles an umbrella turned inside out with a green hat of foliage and a massive trunk. The height of an adult tree is 10 m. The dragon tree got its name because of the resinous red juice. The flowers of the tree appear during the period monsoon rains in the form of branched panicles.

• Australian baobab - "Bottle Tree" or Adansonia Gregory (Adansonia Gregorii), named for its resemblance to a glass container - a bottle. It grows in the mountains of Namibia, its milky juice is very poisonous, in ancient times hunters lubricated their arrows with it. During the flowering period, beautiful pink-red flowers appear on the branches of the bottle tree.

• The largest tree in the world grows in the "Giant Forest" of the Sequoia National Park, California, USA in the Sierra Nevada mountain range (Sierra Nevada, California). The height of the long-lived sequoia "General Sherman" (GeneralSherman), according to various estimates, is about 2800 years old, is 83 meters, the girth of the trunk is more than 24 meters, the circumference of the crown is about 33 meters. But what is the most interesting tree still growing and increasing its trunk diameter by 1.5 cm per year. But in 2006, due to heavy snowfalls, one of the branches of the tree broke off, the diameter of which is about two meters and the length is more than 30 meters, but this incident did not affect its status as "The Most big tree world" growing in our time. But the tallest tree growing here in California is the Hyperion tree, its height reaches 115.5 meters, thereby exceeding the height of the Statue of Liberty. These are the giants on our planet.

• Madagascar baobab or Adansonia Grandidieri (Adansonia Grandidieri), a mighty tree about 80 meters high and about 25 meters in girth, grows on the island of Madagascar. Some specimens of baobabs have been growing for over 1000 years. The even and smooth trunk of the baobab accumulates a large number of water, so it easily tolerates drought. The white flowers of the baobab, although they are short-lived when flowering, having bloomed, live only for a day, but they have been awarded the attention of the treasury of Madagascar. On the 100-franc note they are depicted, the flowers of the Madagascar baobab.

• Baobab Sunland (Sunland) of South Africa, located near Modjadjiskloof, the tree is hollow inside, so in 1933 it was equipped with a mini bar for 15-20 seats. The tree itself is not tall, about 20 meters, but its age is simply impressive, it is over 6000 years old.

• Tree of Life, Bahrain. Among big desert one single green tree 9.75 meters high lives just in extreme conditions for over 400 years now. The locals called this place the Garden of Eden, it is still not known exactly how the tree survives in these conditions, there is an assumption that its roots go deep into the ground, and from there they take life-giving moisture for growth and life. UNESCO has taken this Tree of Life under its protection, including it in the list of "World Heritage Sites".

• Rainbow eucalyptus (Eucalyptus deglupta) with a beautiful multi-colored trunk - a tree, is also a long-liver of our planet and quite tall, sometimes growing up to 100 meters in height or more. The beautiful coloring of the bark comes from the constant peeling off of old strips of bark, exposing bright salad, young bark. Over time, the bark roughens and dulls, turning dark green, then blue and purple, and then changing from orange-red to crimson-brown. These are the constant transformations and updates that occur with the eucalyptus bark, constantly changing its appearance.

• With unusual fruits similar to cannonballs, the Cannon Tree (Couroupitaguianensis) grows in South America. The tree is very prolific, producing 200-300 kernels with a diameter of 15-25 centimeters. favorite tree many subtropical botanical gardens, as it attracts with its original fruits that have stuck around almost the entire tree trunk. But getting close to it, and even more so standing under it, is dangerous, there is a risk of being hit by an impressive core.

• The Great Banyan or Ficus Bengal, this tree, which has the largest crown area, grows in the Indian Botanical Garden in the city of Khauri. Looking from the side at this green miracle of nature, you will not immediately understand that in fact it is not a grove or a shady oak forest, but one tree. This handsome man has another name "Forest Tree", as it has not one, but several thousand trunks at once. It is about 250 years old and occupies a rather impressive area of ​​1.5 hectares and has 3300 aerial roots.

Able to present amazing surprises to a person. They will be discussed below.

To date, more than 60,000 species of trees are known. Among them there are bread, dairy, soap and even sausage trees. In this article, you will learn many interesting facts about the most unusual trees growing in different places of our planet.

Breadfruit

One of the most unusual trees is breadfruit. It grows in tropical countries, but its homeland is New Guinea and the territory of Oceania. They learned about it only in the 17th century thanks to English sailors.

Sailors watched with surprise as the indigenous people eat the fruits of an unusual tree instead of bread. Then the sailors took seedlings of an amazing plant and planted them in their area.

However, nothing good came of it. In the 18th century, it was successfully bred in Jamaica. The fruits of this plant became one of the main products that fed the slaves.

The breadfruit tree has a strong trunk and an extensive crown. It grows rapidly and can reach a height of 25 meters. The length of the fruit is about 30-35 centimeters, and the weight is about 4-5 kg.

Outwardly, they are somewhat similar to melons and have a pimply surface. They grow in clusters, both on the trunk and at the base of large branches. Inside them is a sweet pulp.

Breadfruit is able to go without water for several months, and also withstand heat up to 40 degrees Celsius.

An interesting fact is that this unusual tree can bear fruit for 9 months a year. Every year, about 600-700 fruits are harvested from one tree, for as long as 70 years.

As mentioned earlier, breadfruit is used in cooking: they are boiled, fried, ground into flour or eaten raw.

They taste somewhat like potatoes.

However, they spoil rather quickly, so they have to be eaten within a short period of time. But if you make crackers out of them, they will be stored for quite a long time.

The Samoans invented interesting way preservation of this "bread": they wrap the fruits in banana leaves, and then simply bury them in the soil.

Soon, they begin to ferment, turning into an alcohol-containing mass, which allows them not to deteriorate for a long time.

The remaining parts of this tree are also widely used on the farm: its leaves are fed to livestock, and the seeds are fried.

milk tree

The milk tree is an extremely unusual tree. It is also called "brosium" or "cow tree". Today it can be seen in the South and Central America as well as in Asian countries.

Often it grows up to 30 meters in height. The very name of the tree suggests that it produces juice, for which it is actually grown. Unlike other plants, its milk is not poisonous, but rather healthy and pleasant to the taste.

Outwardly, this juice resembles regular milk, only it is thicker and has a peculiar aroma. Even in the hottest time, the milk does not deteriorate up to a whole week, if it is first boiled over a fire.

The first Europeans to learn about the milk tree were the Spanish conquerors. Arriving at their home, they talked about a marvelous tree that can be milked. An incision is made on the trunk, and a vessel is placed under it, where this unusual juice actually flows. At one time, you can collect 3-4 liters of milk.

Local natives drink such juice in the same way as we drink cow's or goat milk. In addition, wax can be obtained from it, suitable for the manufacture of candles and chewing gum.

Candleberry

Candle tree or edible parmentiera, so named because of unusual shape their fruits. Besides the fact that they look like candles, they also contain oil, which makes them burn very well.

The candle tree grows in the tropical jungle. People have learned to use it for medical purposes.

Soapberry

An unusual soap tree grows in the tropical forests of Asia and America. In that interesting plant, and especially in its fruits, contains many saponins - substances with detergent properties. Once upon a time, Indians successfully bleached fabric with the bark of this tree.

Today, the soap tree is widely used in cosmetology. Its seeds are extremely hard, so rosaries and various wooden ornaments are made from them.

Its fruits are called soap nuts, as they may well serve as a substitute for washing powder. They are absolutely hypoallergenic, do not smell, and also do not cause any harm.

sausage tree

Sausage tree or kigelia, grows in African countries. It grows up to 10 m and has a spreading crown. Large flowers and unusual fruits grow on it, having the shape of a sausage 50-60 cm long. In Europe, they learned about this tree only a couple of centuries ago.

Interestingly, sausage trees grow only singly and never next to each other. With the onset of heat, they shed their leaves to save water, and with the advent of the rainy season, leaves reappear on their branches.

AT daytime unusual flowers are completely closed, and with the sunset they open, showing their scarlet inflorescences. The disadvantage of these flowers is only their unpleasant smell, which is necessary to attract pollinators.

Before eating the fruits of this unusual tree, they must be subjected to heat treatment, as they are very poisonous. An interesting fact is that the locals have learned to make an alcoholic drink out of them.

The fruits have an incredibly hard skin. So, in order to get seeds from them, it is necessary to initially dry the fruit and only then split it with an ax.

The world of trees is truly rich and diverse. Looking at some landscape, sometimes it seems that this is just an invention of the artist, drawn as if for a science fiction film or book. Undoubtedly, each species is unique in its own way, but among over 100,000 varieties there are truly unusual representatives, which cannot be passed by without admiring. In this article, you will learn a lot about these wonderful trees, which differ from their neighbors in size, unusual shapes, flowers or fruits.

Few people know that a tree grows in the jungles of India, forming a real forest! From the main thick banyan trunk, located in the center, several large branches depart, from which thin shoots stretch down. Then, having reached the ground, they take root and begin to grow in width. Having become the size of the main trunk, these shoots start up their branches. The oldest banyan has been living for more than three thousand years and consists of about 3 thousand thin and 3 thousand wide trunks that reach a height 60 meters.

Walking through the shrouds of equatorial Africa, you can come across tall trees with fruits similar to liverwurst. However, despite their delicious appearance, you can't eat them. The locals use these useful trees, which are called kigelia, in different ways, but not for food. Fuel is obtained from dried fruits, and after boiling them, a red dye is obtained, the seeds are used in medicine. "Sausages" serve as material for dishes and decorations. Also, a special African soft drink is prepared from the fruits. Aboriginal people soak them in water, adding honey from wild bees, and leave them to ferment.

This unusual tree got its name due to the amazing resemblance to a glass bottle. And this is due primarily to the fact that the plant accumulates water inside itself, adapting to the very dry climate of Australia. You can meet the Australian baobab in the mountains of Namibia. Ancient hunters smeared their arrows with its poisonous juice. If you're lucky, you might see the bottle tree in bloom. During this period, unusual red-pink flowers grow on bizarre branches.

Tree of Life

It has been growing in the Bahrain desert for over 400 years and is the only living plant for miles around. Surprisingly, the mesquite tree does not have direct access to water. Scientists are still puzzling over how it could survive. It is believed that its roots go so deep underground that they reach an unknown underground river, which has not yet been found. According to another version, the Tree of Life receives moisture from bacteria unknown to science, which extract it from the soil. This lone acacia continues to grow despite all the conditions of the desert and has already become one of the popular attractions for tourists.

Also known as cinnabar red dracaena, it grows on the island of Socotra. Together with the other 40 species of her genus, they are the oldest relic trees on the planet. In appearance, the plant resembles a huge unfolded green umbrella. The dragon tree got its name from the blood-red sap of the tree, which is highly prized by the locals. It blooms in early spring, fragrant panicles of white or light green color appear on hooked needle-shaped branches.

An American artist managed to grow more than 40 flowers on one tree. various kinds stone fruits. Undoubtedly, such a miracle will delight any fruit lover! In the spring, you can see the incredible: the whole tree blooms with pink, lilac, white, raspberry and purple flowers of different shades, and in the summer it already bears fruit. All phase changes resemble a kaleidoscope. So far, the trees are small, but they are already bred in personal collections and museums.

rainbow eucalyptus

These unusually tall trees will not leave anyone indifferent. Often, rainbow eucalyptus trees are grown for decoration. The point is multi-colored vertical stripes covering the trunk. They do not appear immediately: a young tree cannot show off with a pale green outfit. Only after growing up the trunk begins to darken, and then more wonderful stripes appear. It is also interesting that they are updated every year, changing their colors to blue, purple, green, orange and dark red.

One of the most beloved trees in the botanical gardens South America. The name of the plant comes from unusual fruits, similar in appearance to cannonballs. The tree is very prolific: every year the plant produces more than two hundred kernels with a diameter of about 20 centimeters. There are so many of them that they stick around almost the entire trunk.

It is strongly not recommended to come close to the tree, let alone stand under it: the danger of getting a strong blow to the head with a heavy fruit is too great. When it falls, it shatters, making a deafening roar. A white liquid with seeds flows out of the fruit, which turns blue in the sun and begins to emit a very unpleasant odor. Such an aroma can cause an allergic reaction, and the kernel itself is poisonous. From its shell, the locals make their own dishes.

Throughout the globe growing innumerable trees. We are accustomed only to those that grow next to us, and those that do not look like them seem a curiosity. Looking at them, none of us can help but be surprised, remain indifferent and pass by. Without any doubt, each tree is a special masterpiece of nature, which a person should admire.

Trees are part of our lives, supplying us with oxygen, food, homes, warmth and building materials. There are about 100,000 different types of trees, including a quarter of all living plant species on Earth. Among the billions of trees around the world, there are completely unique amazing representatives.

Baobab is considered to be the birthplace of Madagascar, it is also common in Africa and Australia.

Baobab trees are the oldest forms of life on the African mainland, and many of those still standing today date back to Roman times. The amazing baobab or “monkey breadfruit tree” can grow up to 30m high and 11m wide. Most of the year they remain without leaves. characteristic feature baobab is their pot-bellied trunk, which serves as a reservoir of water. The baobab tree can hold up to 120,000 liters of water to survive severe drought conditions. Some trunks are so big that people live inside the tree. One of the most beautiful clusters of Adansonia Grandidier baobabs is located on Baobab Avenue in Morondava, Madagascar. Some baobabs take on the shape of a bottle, a skull, and even a teapot.

Dragon Tree in Icod de los Vinos in Tenerife, one of canary islands, is a unique representative. It is believed that it is between 650 and 1500 years old, but experts find it difficult to draw accurate conclusions, since it does not have one trunk. Rather, it consists of many small trunks that hold on to each other as they grow upwards. It has a dense canopy of leaves and gets its name from the resin that is released when its bark and leaves are cut away. Residents believe that this is the dried blood of a dragon and have been using it since ancient times to treat various ailments.

Giant sequoias that grow in the Sierra Nevada in California are considered the most big trees in terms of volume. The largest tree is "General Sherman" in national park Sequoia, whose height reaches 83 m, the volume is about 1,486 cubic meters. m, and weight more than 6000 tons. The tree is thought to be somewhere between 2300 and 2700 years old, and each year the tree gains as much wood as a normal 18 meter tree contains. It is a real natural masterpiece and the greatest living organism on Earth.

4. Pando - aspen-shaped poplar

Pando or Trembling Giant, located in Utah, USA, is an amazing massive colony wasp trees sprawled across 100 acres of Utah. Almost all of the trees in this colony are genetically identical, that is, they are clones of each other. Every tree in this area comes from a single organism, part of a giant underground root system. Pando consists of 47,000 trunks and its collective weight is 6,600 tons, making it the heaviest organism in the world. Although average age individual trunks is about 130 years old, the whole organism is already about 80,000 years old.

5. Tule Tree

The Tule tree is a particularly large tree of the Taxodium mexico species, which is found near the city of Oaxaca in Mexico. This tree has the largest girth of the trunk (58 m) and a diameter of the trunk, which is 11.5 m. It is said that the Thule Tree is so thick that you do not hug it, but it hugs you. It is believed that the tree is already about 2000 years old. For a while, detractors claimed that in fact there were three trees disguised here, but a thorough DNA analysis confirmed that this is actually one beautiful tree. In 1994, the tree was under threat: the leaves became painfully yellow and there were dead branches everywhere. The tree was dying. When the “healers” of the trees were called, it turned out that the problem that caused the Tule tree to suffer was ordinary thirst and it needed to be treated with water. Naturally, after careful water procedures, the tree came to life.

6. Tree of life

The tree of life in Bahrain is the loneliest tree in the world. The mesquite tree is located on the very high point the barren desert of Bahrain, hundreds of kilometers from other natural trees. It is believed that its roots stretch for several tens of meters to the aquifers. The exact age of the tree is unknown, but it is believed to be over 400 years old. However, the secret of the Tree of Life is not its size, age or shape, although it is quite large and very beautiful. The most amazing thing is that it stands alone in the barren desert at the highest point in Bahrain, in an area where there is absolutely no water. In a place where nothing seemed to survive, this tree seems to radiate life itself. People come here in droves, as the locals believe that the tree stands on the site of the Garden of Eden.

7. Wollemia

Despite its uniqueness and beauty, the interesting qualities of Wollemia are not hidden in appearance but in its history. Wollemia growing in Australia is a real living dinosaur. The oldest fossil of the Wollemia tree dates back to 200 million years ago. When, in 1994, scientists suddenly discovered living tree Wollemiah, they were just dumbfounded. The exact location of these coniferous trees carefully hidden in order to protect those remaining trees, of which there are less than 100 in nature. To save these trees from extinction, a program began in 2006 that allowed the general public to buy Wollemia seedlings and now they can be seen in various botanical gardens.

8. Cashew Tree Piranji

This famous tree, located near the city of Natal in Brazil, is a 177 year old cashew tree that covers almost 2 hectares of land. It was planted in 1888 by a fisherman who did not know that the tree had a genetic mutation that allowed it to take up so much space. Unlike a regular cashew tree, when the branches of the Piranji tree touch the ground, it takes root and continues to grow. Today this tree serves as a tourist attraction. If you get close to this largest cashew tree in the world, you will feel like you are entering a forest. In fact, all this is one tree, the size of which reaches 8400 square meters. m. The tree is 80 times larger than the average cashew tree and covers an area larger than a football field, bringing about 80,000 fruits a year.

9. Tenere Tree

The Tenere tree is mentioned in this list because it no longer exists. A lone acacia growing in the Sahara Desert in Africa's Niger, more than 300 years old, was the only tree within a radius of about 400 km. It was the only tree left of the vast forest that had been swallowed up by the merciless desert. When the scientists dug a hole next to the tree, they found that its roots descended up to 36m below the water table. In 1973, the Tenere tree was run over by a drunk truck driver, and today a metal monument has been erected at the site in honor of the Lonely Tenere Tree.

10. Banyan: Mahabodhi Tree

The banyan tree is named after the banyans or Hindu traders who sold their goods while sitting under the tree. Even if you have never heard of the banyan tree, you will surely recognize it. The shape of this giant tree you will not confuse with anything: a majestic dome with aerial roots that descend from branches to the ground. One of the most famous views The banyan tree called the sacred ficus or Bo tree is a Mahabodhi tree in Anuradhapura, Sri Lanka. The tree is said to have been grown from a cutting of a real tree under which the Buddha attained enlightenment in the 6th century BC. Planted in 288 BC, it is the oldest human-planted tree in the world with an accurate planting date.