Redwoods

I visited the redwoods a few weeks ago, and in light of our social distancing and physical isolation from each other, I’ve been thinking about them recently. Redwoods are the tallest living things on earth (can grow 300 feet tall), and they can live to be 2,000 years old. But their root systems are only 5-6 feet deep. Instead of growing down, their root systems grow out, sometimes as much as 100 feet from their tree, so they can intertwine with the root systems of other redwoods.

These trees have discovered that the best way to live as long and grow as tall is not to go it alone. Instead, they have chosen to bond themselves to one another where they are literally holding each other up. This is why they cluster in groves; you’ll never see a lone redwood.