We didn't even know that America existed, the Renaissance and the mythical were in full force Raffaello Sanzio he would not have been born before another half century, it was 1400. This is the estimated year, in which some of the gods were born beeches oldest in Europe. Between Calabria and Basilicata, on Mount Pollino, in the Pollinello area, stands a beech wood. This precious gift of nature hosts real living monuments. We are talking about the oldest beech trees in Europe.

oldest beech trees in Europe - beech forest with green and yellow leaves
Photo source: Pixabay

With an estimated age of 620 years and with a height that can reach 50 meters, these matusa del bosco have fortunately become a UNESCO heritage site. As beautiful as few other places in Italy, the Pollino national park, which among the various primates boasts that of being the largest national park in Italy, divides its dense forest between the Calabria, Basilicata ed Abruzzo.

The Pollino National Park is home to the oldest beech trees in Europe

For lovers or amateurs of walks in the woods, there is no better destination than Pollino National Park. It will not be difficult to find online information on the route, the stages to be followed and also where and how to be accompanied by a guide. For obvious reasons the excursions in these are very popular and sought after. The mammoth Beech trees, the main attraction of the park, often and easily reach heights of all respects, just think that a 10-storey building measures just 30-35 meters, a height widely reached and surpassed by centuries-old beech trees and not only by them.

oldest beech trees in Europe - beech branch full of yellow leaves
Photo source: Pixabay

However, it is important to say that not everyone will be able to hike at those altitudes and of that intensity, so our suggestion is to prepare yourself, mentally and physically for a good marathon.

The miraculous power of trees

While the numbers listed above are undoubtedly mind-boggling, when the topic is trees there is always a need to be wary. Trees by their very nature can be miraculous. In addition to the function for which they should be protected more than gold, which is to supply the oxygen we breathe, they are real living archives. Thanks to the analysis of their wood, scholars are able to create one map of the climatic evolutionary phases that have invested our planet.

How long do trees live?

Try to imagine a man born so long ago that he is able to tell about the construction of the pyramids, the birth of Jesus, the evolution and fall of the Roman Empire, and much more. Now the question is, how old should this man be? The answer is not simple, albeit obvious, it should be old, very old, even millenary.

oldest beech in Europe - tree trunk with rings
Photo source: Pixabay

Yes, exactly so, trees in some cases live for millennia. If curiosity has gripped you and you can't resist the urge to see a forest dinosaur, in Italy there is a pine that has blown out over 1200 candles.

Italy

According to scientists, the Italus pine was 1200 years old a few decades ago. On the promontory of Pollino at an altitude of about 2000 meters (above sea level) between Basilicata and Calabria, it stands the gentle giant. A teacher of life who, if he could speak, would tell of a world that no longer exists, a world where everything was nature and he was just a tiny tree, a world that, if we continue like this, we risk making it disappear under the blows of pollution, justified , so to speak, from progress.

The oldest beech trees in Europe: between Calabria and Basilicata last edit: 2019-11-18T10:00:24+01:00 da Fat Dahlia

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