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24 of the Oldest Trees in the World

From Methuselah the bristlecone pine to a descendant of Japan's first tea tree.
Jonathan Carey April 19, 2024
Great Basin bristlecone pines are seemingly immortal trees that can often withstand the knobby twists of fate.
nature

Wild Life: Potentially Immortal Bristlecone Pines

In a preview of our new book, we look at scrappy and squat high-elevation trees that can live for thousands of years without seeming to age.
Ula Chrobak April 5, 2024
Snapdragon genes give this genetically-modified tomato its shocking hue.
science

Would You Eat This Purple Tomato?

This fruit owes its luminous violet shade to snapdragon flower DNA.
Diana Hubbell March 27, 2024
Arlington, Washington

Giant Cedar Stump

At a rest stop north of Seattle, you can drive through the trunk of an ancient tree.
Tokyo, Japan

Hanegi Park

The 650 red and white Japanese plum trees of this Tokyo neighborhood blossom each spring.
A fossil leaf of the extinct plant <em>Ginkgo adiantoides</em>, which lived more than 11 million years ago in what is now Idaho.
science

The Best Clues to Life on Mars Could Be in These Idaho Fossils

Well-preserved ancient plants and other finds at the Clarkia fossil beds hint at what kind of evidence any Martian life may have left behind.
Robert Patalano February 26, 2024
Can the famous greenhouse get greener?
botanical gardens

Kew Gardens Is Undergoing a Big, Steamy Change

Fitted PJs, new glasses, and a good drilling will keep this Victorian icon hot.
Daniel Shailer February 20, 2024
Warren, Texas

Geraldine Watson Rare Native Plant Preserve

This magical oasis in East Texas is one of the most biodiverse acres in the country.
Though the original arrowroot is native to the tropical Americas, these were cultivated in India.
food

The Confusing Truth About Arrowroot

What's in a name?
Andrew Coletti January 22, 2024
The "Point Reyes", a vessel known locally as the Inverness Shipwreck in Tomales Bay north of San Francisco.
meteorites

Wonder Is Everywhere: The Cosmic Dust Curator, a Secret Ancient Forest, and More From Around the Web

Get a peek into what we’re obsessed with right now.
April White January 19, 2024
Lassen Peak dusted from a fall snow storm and framed by trees affected by the 2021 Dixie Fire.
national parks

Lassen Volcanic National Park Bounces Back After California's Largest Single Fire

In 2021, the Dixie Fire burned much of the park. Now, Lassen's recovery offers surprising lessons on resilience.
Dani Anguiano January 8, 2024
museums

Podcast: Gourdlandia

One of Ithaca’s most beloved, wholesome art centers is dedicated to the humble gourd.
The Podcast Team December 14, 2023
Herds of glacier mice, which are actually moss balls, move in concert across the ice.
science

Herds of Mysterious ‘Glacier Mice’ Baffle Scientists

These moss balls move in unison, and researchers are okay with not knowing why.
Roxanne Hoorn December 7, 2023
Mandeville, Louisiana

Seven Sisters Oak

Some believe this tree to be more than 1,500 years old.
Mandeville, Louisiana

Old Lady of the Lake Oak

A 200-year-old live oak on the banks of Lake Pontchartrain.
Arctic–Alpine Botanic Garden
Tromsø, Norway

Arctic–Alpine Botanic Garden

The world's northernmost botanic garden has 25 collections of plants from arctic and alpine regions.
Conway, South Carolina

Venus Flytraps at Lewis Ocean Bay Heritage Preserve

A famous—but endangered—plant is on view at an unassuming nature preserve a quick drive from Myrtle Beach.
Wild bluebells, native to the area, are thriving once more on Eoghan Daltun's land on Ireland's Beara Peninsula.
forests

Rewilding His Corner of Ireland's Beara Peninsula Is One Man's Labor of Love

Eoghan Daltun has spent 14 years creating a showcase of native biodiversity.
Rory Carroll August 21, 2023