A Forest of Giant Sequoias Is Growing in Detroit

Most giant sequoias live in California’s Sierra Nevada, a mountain range wedged between Fresno, Lake Tahoe, and the Death Valley desert. Now, the iconic trees can also be found in Detroit. 

The world’s most massive tree species, giant sequoias (Sequoiadendron giganteum) evolved during the late Mesozoic from plants that were found throughout the Northern Hemisphere. They can grow up to 300 feet tall, live for more than 3000 years, and are believed to be named for Sequoyah, a Cherokee scholar who codified a writing system for the Cherokee language in the early 19th century. 

Detroit’s sequoia saplings are being nurtured by Arboretum Detroit, a nonprofit that seeks to reforest vacant city blocks and has created parks for that purpose in the Poletown East Neighborhood. Using seeds provided by the Archangel Ancient Tree Archive in Copemish, Michigan—a nonprofit organization that collects genetic material from endangered tree species with the aim of establishing new populations—Arboretum Detroit hopes to plant a 200-tree grove on unused land acquired from Detroit Public Schools. 

The group has planted 100 sequoia saplings so far, and they grow quickly. Archangel Ancient Tree Archive founder David Milarch told mlive it takes about 25 years for the saplings to reach heights between 60 and 80 feet.

As for the question of why Arboretum Detroit is planting a tree species native to California in a Michigan city, the group’s founder, Andrew “Birch” Kemp, told mlive that giant sequoias are not just beautiful—they can mitigate air pollution. The trees will eventually be planted on the “upwind” side of prevailing air currents and protect Michigan-native trees on the “downwind” side. Each giant sequoia can also absorb about 187 pounds of carbon dioxide per year, reducing the amount of the greenhouse gas in the atmosphere. 

All this is made possible by the fact that sequoias seem to grow pretty well in Detroit’s climate, despite it being wetter and having bigger swings in temperature than the Sierra Nevada. It’s an incredibly durable species, and if their thick bark can protect them against California’s wildfires, surely it can do the same for Michigan’s winters. 

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