On Thu, 23 Oct 1997 14:35:11 -1100, "David South"<southd@fri.cri.nz> wrote: > On the subject of big trees, where are some of the world's largest PLANTED > trees? I expect there are some ones in Europe, India, China, South Africa and > New Zealand. If you know any details about a large planted tree in your> country, send the info to dsouth@forestry.auburn.edu and I will post it on the> web page. > > http://sofserv.forestry.auburn.edu/people/ faculty/biology/south/planted.html > > David South > School of Forestry > Auburn University > Hello, Are you only interested in trees that are old and * huge * ? In Sri Lanka we have what is said to be the oldest * historical * tree. This is a Bo tree (* Ficus religiosa *) in Anuradhapura, Sri Lanka. It is said to have been brought as a sapling from India by Princess Sanghamitta, daughter of King Dharmasoka around 2300 B.C. It is said that the original tree from which the sapling was obtained was the one under which Gautama Buddha received enlightment over 2500 years ago. The original tree is, however, no more which makes that in Sri Lanka the oldest remaining historical tree. Also, there is a tamarind tree (* Tamarindus indica * or is it * T. indicus * (?)) on the Elahera-Bakamuna road in Sri Lanka, which, I am told, is the fourth oldest historical tree in the world. It is reported to be over 1700 years old dating from the reign of King Mahasen (276-304 A.D.) whose name is still revered in connection with the irrigation schemes of that region. The tree's Sinhala name, * Orubendi Siyambalawe *, means the tamarind tree to which canoes were tied in that period. I have been told that the tamarind, though widespread, is not indigenous to Sri Lanka, so this tree could qualify as a planted tree, I suppose. Finally, I should mention that the Heneratgoda Botanical Gardens, a few miles from Colombo, were the location where the first rubber trees (* Hevea brasiliensis *) were planted in Asia. These were seedlings which were brought from Kew in 1876. The above is from memory with some material (on the tamarind tree) from a newspaper article, so more details could perhaps be checked out from a more authoritative source than I have available with me at present. Regards, Rohan H. Wickramasinghe, Institute for Tropical Environmental Studies, 41 Flower Road, Colombo 7, Sri Lanka (e-mail: rohan@ites.ac.lk)
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