Dawn Redwood and Ginkgo trees were seen only in fossils until living stands were discovered in the 1900s. With the Chilean Monkey Puzzle tree, they are living fossils.

The dinosaurs are gone, and the forests they roamed have changed remarkably through ice ages and earthly upheavals. But a few plants have survived nearly unchanged for millions of years. Among them are three trees that are so adaptable they can be seen today planted in parks around the world.

Dawn Redwood (Metasequoia glyptostroboides)

This striking conifer tree’s spring-green needles are so soft the word “needle” hardly applies. Branches sweep out forming a graceful pyramid to the tip reaching as high as 115 feet.

It was known from the fossil record stretching back at least 6 million years. Fossils had been found in North America and Japan, but in 1944 a stand of the living trees was found growing in a remote valley in China.

Seeds were collected and sent to the Arnold Arboretum in Boston, and from there to other arboretums, including the Hoyt Arboretum in Portland, Oregon. Those trees became among the first to produce seeds on the continent since ancient times.

The first Hoyt Arboretum seedlings were almost lost one fall, when all the needles dropped off, prompting the gardener to believe the trees were dead. Just in time, he learned they are deciduous, an unusual trait for a conifer. The following spring, needles reappeared. Dawn Redwoods grow quickly in temperate climates.

Ginkgo (Ginkgo biloba)

The last survivor of a group of ancient conifers, the Ginkgo, also called “maidenhair tree,” showed up abundantly in fossils dating back 150 million years. Western botanists thought the tree was extinct until stands were found growing in China under the care of monks. According to the University of Washington, it is the oldest tree species surviving unchanged on the planet.

Ginkgos can be readily cultivated and are resistant to urban stresses, making them popular as street trees. The soft green leaves are shaped something like ducks’ feet, dense in texture and prominently veined. Though the trees are considered conifers, they are deciduous, turning a brilliant yellow in fall before dropping all their leaves. They are dioecious, having separate male and female trees.

Males are generally preferred for decorative plantings because of the strong odor of the fruit surrounding the seeds produced by the females. The seeds themselves, however, are eaten as a tasty delicacy in China.

Monkey Puzzle (Araucaria araucana)

This reptilian-looking tree appears in fossils millions of years old, but it still survives as a native of Chile and Argentina. Its scale-like leaves are sharp as spear points and grow on the trunk as well as the branches.

Like Ginkgo, male and female trees are separate. Females produce large cones with seeds that are eaten like nuts in Chile and were an important food source for indigenous peoples.

Trees were planted and grow readily in the Hoyt Arboretum in Portland, Oregon, and on the University of Washington Campus, but are rarely seen in North America outside the Pacific Northwest, according to the University.

With its prehistoric look and beautiful shape it often draws both awed curiosity and admiration. Seeds arrived in Portland with a Chilean delegate in 1904 when the young city hosted a world’s fair, the Lewis and Clark Exposition. Fair goers received seeds as a gift from Chile and planted them with great success in yards around town where they can be seen growing today.

The common name of the tree reportedly came from an Englishman visiting Chile who commented that it would be a puzzle for a monkey to climb the tree.

Sources and References:

Campus Public Art Program, University of Washington, Box 353440, Seattle, WA 98195, Brockman Memorial Tree Tour, on the web at: washington.edu/home/treetour

Hoyt Arboretum, 4000 SW Fairview Blvd., Portland, OR 97221, on the web at: hoytarboretum.org