47-543: Old Tjikko is an approximately 9,566 years-old Norway spruce , located in the Dalarna province in Sweden. Old Tjikko originally gained fame as the "world's oldest tree". Old Tjikko is, however, a clonal tree that has regenerated new trunks, branches and roots over millennia rather than an individual tree of great age. Old Tjikko is recognized as the oldest living Picea abies and the fourth-oldest known clonal tree . The age of
94-471: A 3-year-old seedling may be considered established; in moist habitats, seedlings may need 4 or 5 years to become established on mineral soil, possibly longer on litter seedbeds. Growth remains very slow for several to many years. Three years after shelterwood felling in subalpine Alberta, dominant regeneration averaged 5.5 cm in height in scarified blocks, and 7.3 cm in non-scarified blocks (Day 1970), possibly reflecting diminished fertility with
141-512: A cluster of around twenty spruce trees in the same area, all over eight millennia old. The estimated age of Old Tjikko is close to the maximum possible for this area, as the last ice age 's receding Fenno-Scandian ice sheet only released the Fulufjället Mountain around ten millennia ago. Nature conservancy authorities considered putting a fence around the tree to protect it from possible vandals or trophy hunters . On July 1, 2024, it
188-460: A degree, these classification procedures have important limitations; genetic composition of the seeds produced by a stand is determined by both the seed trees and the pollen parents, and species classification of hybrid seedlots and estimates of their level of introgression on the basis of seed-tree characteristics can be unreliable when hybrid seedlots vary in their introgressiveness in consequence of spatial and temporal variations in contributions from
235-402: A distinct species, it takes the name Alpine spruce ( Picea alpestris ). As with Siberian spruce, it hybridizes extensively with Norway spruce; pure specimens are rare. Hybrids are commonly known as Norwegian spruce, which should not be confused with the pure species Norway spruce. The Norway spruce is one of the most widely planted spruces, both in and outside of its native range, and one of
282-526: A pale brown 15 mm wing. The tallest measured Norway spruce is 62.26 m (204 ft) tall and grows near Ribnica na Pohorju , Slovenia . The Norway spruce grows throughout Europe from Norway in the northwest and Poland eastward, and also in the mountains of central Europe, southwest to the western end of the Alps, and southeast in the Carpathians and Balkans to the extreme north of Greece. The northern limit
329-624: A trunk diameter of 1 to 1.5 m. It can grow fast when young, up to 1 m per year for the first 25 years under good conditions, but becomes slower once over 20 m (65 ft) tall. The shoots are orange-brown and glabrous. The leaves are needle-like with blunt tips, 12–14 mm long, quadrangular in cross-section, and dark green on all four sides with inconspicuous stomatal lines. The seed cones are 9–17 cm long (the longest of any spruce), and have bluntly to sharply triangular-pointed scale tips. They are green or reddish, maturing brown 5–7 months after pollination. The seeds are black, 4–5 mm long, with
376-458: A wide distribution for it being planted for its wood, and is the species used as the main Christmas tree in several countries around the world. It was the first gymnosperm to have its genome sequenced . The Latin specific epithet abies means "like Abies , Fir tree". Norway spruce is a large, fast-growing evergreen coniferous tree growing 35–55 m (115–180 ft) tall and with
423-526: A wide variety of sizes and shapes, from full-sized forest trees to extremely slow-growing, prostrate forms. They are occasionally traded under the obsolete scientific name Picea excelsa (an illegitimate name ). The following cultivars have gained the Royal Horticultural Society 's Award of Garden Merit : The Norway spruce is used in forestry for ( softwood ) timber , and paper production. The Norwegian company Borregaard produces
470-558: Is a subjective concept based on the idea that once a seedling has successfully reached a certain size, not much is likely to prevent its further development. Criteria vary, of course, but Noble and Ronco (1978), for instance, considered that seedlings four to five years old, or 8 cm to 10 cm tall, warranted the designation "established", since only unusual factors such as snow mold , fire , trampling , or predation would then impair regeneration success. Eis (1967) suggested that in dry habitats on either mineral soil or litter seedbeds
517-617: Is extensive overlap in variation with trees from other parts of the range. Some botanists treat Siberian spruce as a subspecies of Norway spruce, though in their typical forms, they are very distinct, the Siberian spruce having cones only 5–10 cm long, with smoothly rounded scales, and pubescent shoots. Genetically Norway and Siberian spruces have turned out to be extremely similar and may be considered as two closely related subspecies of P. abies . Another spruce with smoothly rounded cone scales and hairy shoots occurs rarely in
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#1732868930026564-658: Is in the arctic, just north of 70° N in Norway. Its eastern limit in Russia is hard to define, due to extensive hybridization and intergradation with the Siberian spruce , but is usually given as the Ural Mountains. However, trees showing some Siberian spruce characters extend as far west as much of northern Finland, with a few records in northeast Norway. The hybrid is known as Picea × fennica (or P. abies subsp. fennica , if
611-665: Is mainly a sign of gratitude for the aid these countries gave during the Second World War. In North America, Norway spruce is widely planted, specifically in the Northeastern , Pacific Coast , and Rocky Mountain states , as well as in southeastern Canada. It is naturalised in some parts of North America. There are naturalized populations occurring from Connecticut to Michigan , and it is probable that they occur elsewhere. Norway spruces prefer cool-summer areas and they will grow up to USDA Growing Zone 7. Seed production begins when
658-422: Is more difficult. Species classification for seeds collected from spruce stands in which introgressive hybridization between white and Sitka spruces ( P. sitchensis ) may have occurred is important for determining appropriate cultural regimens in the nursery. If, for instance, white spruce grown at container nurseries in southwestern British Columbia are not given an extended photoperiod, leader growth ceases early in
705-401: Is the "oldest living tree". The oldest individual specimen of Norway spruce discovered by tree ring dating found in 2012 in a nature reserve of Buskerud County, Norway, was found to be 532 years old. However, Pando , a stand of 47,000 quaking aspen clones, is estimated to be between 14,000 and one million years old. The stress is on the difference between the singular "oldest tree" and
752-401: Is the accepted name of this species. More than 150 synonyms of Picea abies have been published. Homotypic synonyms of Picea abies are: Some heterotypic synonyms of Picea abies are: Spruce About 35; see text. A spruce is a tree of the genus Picea ( / p aɪ ˈ s iː . ə / py- SEE -ə ), a genus of about 40 species of coniferous evergreen trees in
799-511: The Norway spruce or European spruce , is a species of spruce native to Northern , Central and Eastern Europe . It has branchlets that typically hang downwards, and the largest cones of any spruce , 9–17 cm long. It is very closely related to the Siberian spruce ( Picea obovata ), which replaces it east of the Ural Mountains , and with which it hybridizes freely. The Norway spruce has
846-469: The pulvinus , give it away. Beyond that, determination can become more difficult. Intensive sampling in the Smithers/Hazelton/Houston area of British Columbia showed Douglas (1975), according to Coates et al. (1994), that cone scale morphology was the feature most useful in differentiating species of spruce; the length, width, length: width ratio, the length of free scale (the distance from
893-514: The Central Alps in eastern Switzerland . It is also distinct in having thicker, blue-green leaves. Many texts treat this as a variant of Norway spruce, but it is as distinct as many other spruces, and appears to be more closely related to Siberian spruce ( Picea obovata ), Schrenk's spruce ( Picea schrenkiana ) from central Asia and Morinda spruce ( Picea smithiana ) in the Himalaya . Treated as
940-683: The annual growth period as well as differences in frost-hardiness in spring and autumn. These annual growth patterns are important to recognize in order to choose the proper reforestation material of Picea abies . p-Hydroxybenzoic acid glucoside , picein , piceatannol and its glucoside ( astringin ), isorhapontin (the isorhapontigenin glucoside), catechin and ferulic acid are phenolic compounds found in mycorrhizal and non-mycorrhizal roots of Norway spruces. Piceol and astringin are also found in P. abies . Extracts from Picea abies have shown inhibitory activity on porcine pancreatic lipase in vitro . Picea abies (L.) H. Karst
987-468: The assembly of such a large and repetitive genome is a particularly challenging task, mainly from a computational perspective. Within populations of Picea abies there is great genetic variability, which most likely reflect populations' isolation in glacial refugia and post-glacial evolutionary history. Genetic diversity can in particular be detected when looking at how the populations respond to climatic conditions. E.g. variations in timing and length of
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#17328689300261034-429: The branches, and by their cones (without any protruding bracts ), which hang downwards after they are pollinated. The needles are shed when 4–10 years old, leaving the branches rough with the retained pegs. In other similar genera, the branches are fairly smooth. Spruce are used as food plants by the larvae of some Lepidoptera (moth and butterfly) species, such as the eastern spruce budworm . They are also used by
1081-565: The family Pinaceae , found in the northern temperate and boreal ( taiga ) regions of the Earth. Picea is the sole genus in the subfamily Piceoideae . Spruces are large trees, from about 20 to 60 m (about 60–200 ft) tall when mature, and have whorled branches and conical form. Spruces can be distinguished from other genera of the family Pinaceae by their needles (leaves), which are four-sided and attached singly to small persistent peg-like structures ( pulvini or sterigmata ) on
1128-643: The first growing season, and seedlings do not reach the minimum height specifications. But, if an extended photoperiod is provided for Sitka spruce, seedlings become unacceptably tall by the end of the first growing season. Species classification of seedlots collected in areas where hybridization of white and Sitka spruces has been reported has depended on (i) easily measured cone scale characters of seed trees, especially free scale length, (ii) visual judgements of morphological characters, e.g., growth rhythm, shoot and root weight, and needle serration, or (iii) some combination of (i) and (ii) (Yeh and Arnott 1986). Useful to
1175-563: The following spring. More than half of spruce seedling mortality probably occurs during the first growing season and is also very high during the first winter, when seedlings are subjected to freezing damage, frost heaving and erosion, as well as smothering by litter and snow-pressed vegetation. Seedlings that germinate late in the growing season are particularly vulnerable because they are tiny and have not had time to harden off fully. Mortality rates generally decrease sharply thereafter, but losses often remain high for some years. "Establishment"
1222-1598: The fossil record is from the Early Cretaceous ( Valanginian ) of western Canada, around 136 million years old. P. sitchensis (Bongard) Carrière P. breweriana Watson P. likiangensis (Franchet) Pritzel P. farreri Page & Rushforth P. spinulosa (Griffith) Henry P. schrenkiana Fischer & Meyer P. smithiana (Wallich) Boiss. P. glauca (Moench) Voss P. engelmannii Parry ex Engelmann P. martinezii T.F.Patt. P. chihuahuana Martínez P. alcoquiana (Veitch ex Lindley) Carrière P. brachytyla (Franchet) Pritzel P. neoveitchii Masters P. morrisonicola Hayata P. purpurea Masters P. wilsonii Masters P. orientalis (von Linné) Peterm. P. maximowiczii Regel ex Masters P. polita (Siebold & Zuccarini) Carrière P. pungens Engelmann P. glehnii (Schmidt) Masters P. jezoensis (Sieb. & Zuccarini) Carrière P. rubens Sargent P. mariana (Miller) Britton, Sterns & Poggenburg P. omorika (Pančić) Purkyne P. obovata Ledeb. P. abies (von Linné) Karsten P. koyamae Shiras. P. asperata Masters P. koraiensis Nakai P. torano (Siebold ex Koch) Koehne P. retroflexa Masters P. shirasawae Hayashi P. crassifolia Komarov P. meyeri Rehder & Wilson As of April 2022 , Plants of
1269-418: The harsh extremes of the environment in which it lives. During the warming of the 20th century, the tree sprouted into a normal tree formation. The husband and wife who discovered the tree, Leif Kullman (Professor of Physical Geography at Umeå University ), and Lisa Öberg (Tree scientist with a doctorate in biology and ecology from Mid Sweden University) attributed this growth spurt to global warming and gave
1316-435: The imprint of the seed wing to the tip of the scale), and the percentage free scale (length of free scale as a percentage of the total length of the scale) were most useful in this regard. Daubenmire (1974), after range-wide sampling, had already recognized the importance of the two latter characters. Taylor (1959) had noted that the most obvious morphological difference between typical Picea glauca and typical P. engelmannii
1363-416: The larvae of gall adelgids ( Adelges species). In the mountains of western Sweden , scientists have found a Norway spruce , nicknamed Old Tjikko , which by reproducing through layering , has reached an age of 9,550 years and is claimed to be the world's oldest known living tree. Determining that a tree is a spruce is not difficult; evergreen needles that are more or less quadrangled, and especially
1410-585: The most economically important coniferous species in Europe. It is used as an ornamental tree in parks and gardens . It is also widely planted for use as a Christmas tree . Every Christmas, the Norwegian capital city, Oslo, provides the cities of London (the Trafalgar Square Christmas tree ), Edinburgh and Washington, D.C., with a Norway spruce, which is placed at the central most square of each city. This
1457-447: The multiple "oldest trees", and between "oldest clone" and "oldest non-clone". Old Tjikko is one of a series of genetically identical clones growing from a root system, one part of which is estimated to be 9,550 years old based on carbon dating. The oldest known individual tree (that has not taken advantage of vegetative cloning ) is a Great Basin bristlecone pine over 5,000 years old (germination in 3051 BC). The genome of Picea abies
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1504-727: The pollen parent (Yeh and Arnott 1986). Secondly, morphological characters are markedly influenced by ontogenetic and environmental influences, so that to discern spruce hybrid seedlot composition with accuracy, hybrid seedlots must differ substantially in morphology from both parent species. Yeh and Arnott (1986) pointed out the difficulties of estimating accurately the degree of introgression between white and Sitka spruces; introgression may have occurred at low levels, and/or hybrid seed lots may vary in their degree of introgression in consequence of repeated backcrossing with parental species. Spruce seedlings are most susceptible immediately following germination , and remain highly susceptible through to
1551-477: The removal of the A horizon. DNA analyses have shown that traditional classifications based on the morphology of needle and cone are artificial. A 2006 study found that P. breweriana had a basal position, followed by P. sitchensis , and the other species were further divided into three clades , suggesting that Picea originated in North America. The oldest record of spruce that has been found in
1598-453: The respiratory tract, skin, locomotor system, gastrointestinal tract and infections. During the production of Mont d'Or cheese it is wrapped in a " sangle " made from the cambium of a Norway spruce (French: Épicéa commun [ fr ] ) for about two weeks at least, which gives the cheese a unique flavour. A press release from Umeå University says that a Norway spruce clone named Old Tjikko , carbon dated as 9,550 years old,
1645-422: The root system, which found roots dating back to 375, 5,660, 9,000, and 9,550 years ago. Carbon dating is not accurate enough to pin down the exact year the tree sprouted from seed; however, given the estimated age, the tree is supposed to have sprouted around 7550 B.C. For comparison, the invention of writing (and thus, the beginning of recorded history ) did not occur until around 4000 B.C. Researchers have found
1692-582: The seeds have a significantly reduced germination rate in areas with hot, humid summers. The Norway spruce tolerates acidic soils well, but does not do well on dry or deficient soils. From 1928 until the 1960s it was planted on surface mine spoils in Indiana. Several cultivars have been selected as ornamentals ('Barrya', 'Capitata', 'Decumbens', 'Dumosa', 'Clanbrassiliana', 'Gregoryana', 'Inversa', 'Microsperma', 'Nidiformis', 'Ohlendorffii', 'Repens', 'Tabuliformis', 'Maxwellii', 'Virgata', 'Inversa', 'Pendula'), with
1739-409: The synthetic substitute for natural vanilla Vanillin using the Norwegian spruce. They are currently the only company to produce wood based vanillin and is claimed by the company to be preferred by their customers due to, among other reasons, its much lower carbon footprint than petrochemically synthesized vanillin. It is esteemed as a source of tonewood by stringed-instrument makers. One form of
1786-594: The tree called Haselfichte [ de ] (Hazel-spruce) grows in the European Alps and has been recognized by UNESCO as intangible cultural heritage. This form was used by Stradivarius for instruments. The tree is the source of spruce beer , which was once used to prevent and even cure scurvy . Norway spruce shoot tips have been used in traditional Austrian medicine internally (as syrup or tea) and externally (as baths, for inhalation, as ointments, as resin application or as tea) for treatment of disorders of
1833-520: The tree is in its fourth decade and total lifespan is up to 300 years in its natural range in Europe. Introduced Norway spruces in the British Isles and North America have a much shorter life expectancy. As the tree ages, its crown thins out and lower branches die off. In the northern US and Canada, Norway spruce is reported as invasive in some locations; however, it does not pose a problem in Zone 6 and up as
1880-519: The tree its nickname "Old Tjikko" after their late dog. The tree has survived for so long due to vegetative cloning . The visible tree is relatively young, but it is part of an older root system that dates back millennia. The trunk of the tree may die and regrow multiple times, but the tree's root system remains intact and in turn sprouts another trunk. The trunk may only live for about six hundred years, and when one trunk dies another eventually grows back in its place. Also, each winter, heavy snow may push
1927-408: The tree was determined by carbon dating of genetically matched plant material collected from under the tree, as dendrochronology does not work for clonal trees. The trunk itself is estimated to be only a few centuries old, but the plant has survived for much longer due to a process known as layering (when a branch comes in contact with the ground, it sprouts a new root), or vegetative cloning (when
Old Tjikko - Misplaced Pages Continue
1974-410: The tree's low-lying branches to ground level, where they take root and survive to grow again the next year in a process known as layering . Layering occurs when a tree's branch comes in contact with the earth, and new roots sprout from the contact point. Other trees, such as coast redwoods and western red cedars are known to reproduce by layering. The tree's age was determined by carbon-14 dating of
2021-419: The trunk dies but the root system is still alive, it may sprout a new trunk). The root system of Old Tjikko is estimated to be 9,566 years old, making it the world's oldest known Norway spruce . It stands 5 metres (16 ft) tall and is located on Fulufjället Mountain of Dalarna province in Sweden. For millennia, the tree appeared in a stunted shrub formation (also known as a krummholz formation) due to
2068-514: The two taxa are considered subspecies ), and can be distinguished by a tendency towards having hairy shoots and cones with smoothly rounded scales. Norway spruce cone scales are used as food by the caterpillars of the tortrix moth Cydia illutana , whereas Cydia duplicana feeds on the bark around injuries or canker . Populations in southeast Europe tend to have on average longer cones with more pointed scales; these are sometimes distinguished as Picea abies var. acuminata , but there
2115-562: Was reported that the Stockholm-based art studio Goldin+Senneby were building a climate-controlled installation at a new hospital campus in Malmö , Sweden. The installation houses a clone of Old Tjikko and was created using small twigs cut from Old Tjikko's top branches, which were then grafted onto stems of other spruce trees. This process would thus result in saplings with DNA identical to that of Old Tjikko. Picea abies Picea abies ,
2162-430: Was sequenced in 2013, the first gymnosperm genome to be completely sequenced. The genome contains approximately 20 billion base pairs and is about six times the size of the human genome, despite possessing a similar number of genes. A large proportion of the spruce genome consists of repetitive DNA sequences, including long terminal repeat transposable elements . Despite recent advances in massively parallel DNA sequencing,
2209-511: Was the cone scale, and Horton (1956,1959) found that the most useful diagnostic features of the two spruces are in the cone; differences occur in the flower, shoot and needle, "but those in the cone are most easily assessed" (Horton 1959). Coupé et al. (1982) recommended that cone scale characters be based on samples taken from the midsection of each of ten cones from each of five trees in the population of interest. Without cones, morphological differentiation among spruce species and their hybrids
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