This Old Tree

A lone mulberry tree stands beside the Washington Monument. It is curious, unexpected, and impossible to ignore once you notice it. Who planted it? Is it historic? Is it one tree or two? Why is it preserved, when there is no other tree on the immediate grounds? D.C. tree tour guide Sam Nelson chased down the answers, found in a 2014 government report. The author is landscape historian Jonathan Pliska, who also wrote A Garden for the President: A History of the White House Gardens. ...

Kongeegen, or the 1,500 year old “King’s Oak,” is deep inside a forest called Jægerspris Nordskov in Denmark. The tree is named after 19th century King Frederik VII, who owned a nearby castle with his wife, the Countess Danner. It is a national treasure and one of northern Europe’s oldest living oak trees. Getting there meant a two-mile hike through the woods with guests Anders Jensen of the Danish Tree Association and forest historian Helle Serup of The Green Museum. They tell the bio...

Sa Melabrina is a Downy Oak tree the size of a small church, draped in moss and ferns. Her ancient arms spread wide in the surrounding forest near Illorai, Sardinia. She's the oldest and largest of her kind in all of Europe. And she's been standing here in these mountains for nine centuries. What she symbolizes is even greater than her beauty. The town’s mayor organized a remarkable conference drawing scientists, conservationists, and community leaders from across Sardinia and beyond, all uni...

In the small Estonian town of Orissaare, football players dribble around a 150-year-old oak tree standing impossibly in the middle of their soccer field or "stadium." What seems like a quirky local oddity became a symbol of national pride when this tree won the 2015 European Tree of the Year, beating much larger countries like Hungary, Spain, and the UK. How did an unknown Estonian oak outcompete all of Europe? The answer involves brilliant PR, ancient folklore, a fierce independence forged ...

What happens when six arborists come down from the trees to step behind the mic? Find out by listening to this special episode of stories by tree professionals told LIVE in front of an audience at the annual conference of the New England Chapter of the International Society of Arboriculture. Where does the adrenaline come from? What barriers have been climbed? What drives them, ropes and harness in hand? Hear what arborists say about defining moments in their careers, their struggles, ...