The cookie is set by the GDPR Cookie Consent plugin and is used to store whether or not user has consented to the use of cookies. The cookie is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Performance". This cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. The cookie is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Other. The cookies is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Necessary". The cookie is set by GDPR cookie consent to record the user consent for the cookies in the category "Functional". Native to the Sichuan-Hubei region of China, it grows at elevations of 2,400 to 4,800 feet (750 1,500 m) above sea level Translated from Chinese Shiu Shan, it means Water Fir. The cookie is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Analytics". Metasequoia glyptostroboides (Dawn Redwood) is a deciduous conifer that can reach staggering heights over 150 feet (45m) tall in its native environment. These cookies ensure basic functionalities and security features of the website, anonymously. Necessary cookies are absolutely essential for the website to function properly. The dawn fossil is a majestic specimen, a true sanctuary for its place of origin, is fast growing and extremely ornamental in addition to providing excellent quality wood. It is very tolerant of soil drenching and / or flooded soils. The species prefers its planting in moist and well-drained soil, does not grow well in alkaline or dry soil. This “preservation wood” is scheduled to open to the public only in 2035. The goal of this project is 1,000-5,000 trees. In 1995, a center for the preservation of this species was established in North Carolina, where they were planted in a natural state and their records can be observed and documented in the wild without travel to China. And even if the species will continue to live on patios, parks and roads all over China, the metasequoia glyptostroboides forest ecosystem could disappear when mature trees die. As such, however, it is critically endangered in nature.Īlthough logging is prohibited and illegal, the demand for campaign seedlings and cone gathering has been so aggressively sustained that it has reached the point where natural reproduction is no longer occurring in the redwood dawn forest. Since its discovery the species has become a national point of pride and is simultaneously protected under Chinese law and widely planted. In the city of lichuan, there is a forest today made up of approximately 5,000 trees of metasequoia glyptostroboides. The genase metasequoia was first described as a mesozoic era fossil in 1941, but in 1943 a small group was identified and discovered in china in modaoxi (presently moudao, lichuan city, hubei).ĭue to World War II, they were studied and finally described only in 1948, when at that time the arnoldum arnold at harvard university sent an expedition to collect seeds and distribute them to various universities and arborets around the world. A breathtaking pine with varying coloration of its leaves during the seasons of the year.
Relatively free of pests, except for a canker which has been reported recently.This true spectacle of nature is one of three species of conifers known as sequoias. The cultivar 'National' grows to 85 feet tall. Tolerates wet soils, but does well in most average soils, as well. Thought to be extinct until discovered in one valley in China. Beautful verdant foliage in the spring, braided trunk relief and attractive orange needles in the fall. Propagation is from seeds or cuttings taken in late summer. Metasequoia glytostroboides, the dawn redwood is a most exceptional species. It appears to be adapted to clay soil and grows best when located on continually moist sites with slightly acidic soil. The preferred soil is moist and moderately fertile, but Metasequoia does not appear to be impacted by drought, having survived in urban landscapes during recent summer droughts. The tree grows rapidly but late season growth may be injured by early frosts. Lower branches should be left on the tree for most other uses to enjoy the graceful form and delightful foliage. The tree has been used primarily as a specimen, but there are reports of it being very tolerant of air pollution and it has done well as a street tree with lower branches removed. The MetaSequoia Mystery: The 1940s discovery in China of the dawn redwood a living fossil we now call Metasequoia glyptostroboides remains in shadows cast by war, political upheaval, and scholarly intriguea tree once thought to be as extinct as the dinosaurs with which it once co-inhabited the earth. Pest resistance: resistant to pests/diseases Verticillium wilt susceptibility: resistant Soil tolerances: clay sand loam acidic extended flooding well-drained Trunk and Branches Trunk/bark/branches: branches droop very showy typically one trunk thorns Fruit characteristics: does not attract wildlife not showy fruit/leaves not a litter problem