Chuck DarwinSometime around the end of the last ice age
—around 20,000 years ago
—a single aspen seed rooted, sprouted, and began cloning itself
in what is now central Utah.
Known as #Pando, which comes from the Latin “I spread,”
🔸the world’s largest known organism continues to grow today,
🔹comprising more than 40,000 individual trees.
🔸Every trunk emerged as a shoot from the same root system,
🔹and scientists estimate Pando weighs about 13 million pounds.
For photographer Mitch Epstein, the phenomenal resilience, scale, and lengthy lifespans of trees form the basis of his ongoing series #Old #Growth.
From the world’s most voluminous #sequoias to the most ancient weathered and gnarled #bristlecone #pines
—which can live more than 4,000 years
—he captures remarkable stalwarts around the U.S.
https://www.thisiscolossal.com/2024/07/mitch-epstein-old-growth/
In ‘Old Growth,’ Mitch Epstein Travels the U.S. to Capture Monumental Ancient Relics — Colossal
Sometime around the end of the last ice age—around 20,000 years ago—a single aspen seed rooted, sprouted, and began cloning itself in what is now central Utah. Known as Pando, which comes from the Latin “I spread,” the world’s largest known organism continues to grow today, comprising more than 40,000 individual trees. Every trunk emerged as a shoot from the same root system, and scientists estimate Pando weighs about 13 million pounds. That’s one massive plant. More