Boole (tree)

The Boole Tree is a giant sequoia in the Giant Sequoia National Monument, Fresno County, California. The Boole Tree is the eighth tallest sequoia in the world and is the largest in terms of base circumference at 113 feet. It is estimated to be more than 2,000 years old.[1] The tree's stature is accentuated by its isolation above the Kings River where it towers over the rest of the forest.[2]

The Boole tree – sixth largest tree in the world
The Boole tree, top branches mostly dead

The Boole tree is the largest in the Converse Basin Grove, which is 5 miles (8 km) from the General Grant Grove in Kings Canyon National Park. Converse Basin used to be a large grove, but was logged of most of its giant sequoias between 1892 and 1918. Now only perhaps 60–100 large specimens survive out of thousands. However, this grove is still the second largest contiguous grove in the world.

Namesake

The Boole Tree was named around 1895 by A.H. Sweeny, a Fresno doctor, after Franklin A. Boole, a supervisor of the logging operation who spared the tree due to its great size.

Description

The Boole Tree was once thought to be the largest tree in the world, but it is now known to be the sixth largest, with five other giant sequoias surpassing it in size: the General Sherman, General Grant, President, Lincoln, and Stagg trees.[3] Despite this, Boole is still the largest in terms of circumference, with a base measuring 113 ft (34 m).

Located among shorter Scouler willows that have grown in the area following logging, the tree stands out at a height of 268 feet. It is likely growing faster due to a lack of competition in its modified environment, and its survival may also be attributed to the reduction of fuel in the area since logging ceased in the 1900s.[4]

Dimensions
Height above base[5] 268.8 ft 81.9 m
Circumference at ground 113.0 ft 34.4 m
Diameter 4.5 ft (1.4 m) above highest point on ground[5] 25.4 ft 7.7 m
Diameter 60 ft (18 m) above base[5] 15.6 ft 4.8 m
Diameter 180 ft (55 m) above base[5] 11.9 ft 3.6 m
Estimated bole volume[5] 43,931 cu ft 1,244 m3

See also

References
  1. "Boole Tree | Giant Sequoia National Monument". www.fs.fed.us. Retrieved 2021-12-04.
  2. John McKinney (April 21, 2002). "It's Clear-Cut: Converse Basin's Sequoias Were Once Majestic". Morning Tribune. Los Angelese, California. Retrieved December 11, 2022.
  3. "The Giant Sequoia -- Forest Masterpiece". Sequoia and Kings Canyon National Park. U.S. National Park Service. 2003-02-13.
  4. Hartesveldt, Richard J.; Harvey, H. Thomas; Shellhammer, Howard S.; Ronald E., Stecker (1975). The Giant Sequoia of the Sierra Nevada (PDF). Washington, D.C.: U.S. Department of the Interior, National Park Service. p. 55.
  5. Flint, Wendell D. (1987). To Find the Biggest Tree. Sequoia National History Association. p. 95.
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