Coastal Redwood
- Species:
Sequoia sempervirens
- Family: Cupressaceae
- Origin: West North America
- Common Name: Coastal Redwood.
- Mature Height: 120m.
The Coastal Redwood,
is confined to
the fog belt
in the Coastal Range of California and Oregon. It was first discovered
in 1794 by Archibald Menzies who thought it was a Taxodium. It was
until recently placed in the Taxodiaceae but due to DNA research is now
in the Cupressaceae. Sequoia sempervirens was first introduced to
Russia in 1840 and then from Russia into Britain in 1843. Theodore
Hartweg, a collector for the Horticultural Society of London (later to
be renamed the Royal Horticultural Society), also introduced seeds in
1846. A specimen of Sequoia sempervirens in the Redwood Creek Grove is
the tallest living tree in the world at about 370'. The oldest recorded
tree was 2,200 years old. Two of the oldest trees in Britain are at
Smeaton House, East Lothian and at Rossie Priory in Perthshire planted
in 1844 and about 1845 respectively. Sequoia sempervirens is said to
grow best in areas with moist, wet summers. The leaves are yew-like in
two distinct rows but with white stomata on the reverse; they smell of
candle-wax.
