Addiction's blog: "California History, facts, and claims to fame."

posted on 08/24/2010&nbs-07:00;@&nbs-07:00;05:08&nbs-07:00;am

California Forests & Environment
http://fubar.com/california-forests-environment/b335526-1127354

California holds within it the most diverse environment on the planet.
In the midst of summer, Point Reyes is the coolest place in the Continental United States.
Death Valley is known as the hottest, driest place in the United States where temperatures consistently reach over 120 F (49 C) during summer months.
In 1925 a giant sequoia located in California's Kings Canyon National Park was named the nation's national Christmas tree. The tree is over 300 feet (91 m) in height.
Inyo National Forest is home to the bristle cone pine, the oldest living tree species. Some of the gnarled trees which only grow at very high elevations are thought to be over 4,600 years old.
“General Sherman,” in Sequoia National Park is a 3,500-year-old sequoia tree. Its trunk is 102 feet (32 m) in circumference.
The California redwood is a prehistoric tree. All trees are descended from the redwood. The coastal climate along the Pacific Ocean protected them from the great ice sheets that covered much of North America during previous ice ages.
The redwood is the official state tree of California. Many of the giant redwoods in Sequoia National Park are more than 2,000 years old.

The redwood is the world's tallest tree, growing up to 370 feet (113 m) tall.
Although the Redwoods can reach heights of nearly 40 stories tall, their root systems are only 10 feet deep. Instead of growing down, the shallow roots of the Redwood tree grow out, and spread sideways up to 250 feet (75 m) from the trunk.
Sixty percent of the world's tallest trees can be viewed along the 31 mile Avenue of the Giants.
The bark of the Redwood is deeply-furrowed, fibrous, up to about 1 foot (30.5 cm) thick and lacks resin.
Much of California's land has been cleared for housing and agriculture. But because of reforestation practices, California forests are nearly as large as 100 years ago.
California has nearly 37 million acres of forests in private and public ownerships, more than 1/3 of the state's entire land base.
California foresters plant an average of 7 new trees for every one harvested. For the last 25 years, tree growth has exceeded harvest in California forests.