Tickfaw State Park Cypress--"Grandma tree"-- Over 600 Years Old
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| "Grandma Tree"-- Tickfaw State Park GPS: N30.22.958 W090.38.329 |
The most well known tree in Tickfaw State Park, near Springville in Livingston Parish-- the Grandma Tree-- has finally revealed her (approximate) age, thanks to a boring recently taken by the La Purchase Cypress Legacy campaign.
Here are the statistics
Circumference at Buttress: Approx. 20"10"
Trunk circumference above buttress: Approx. 15'5" (used for age determination)
Boring length: 7.75 inches
Rings counted: Approx. 187
187 rings / x = 7.75" boring / 30" trunk radius
x (total rings) = approx. 724
Projected age 600 + years
This projected age accounts for the likely faster tree growth at the beginning of it lifespan. Like most older cypress, much of the tree is hollow. Closely spaced rings seen in photo below indicate a very slow growing cypress, as is often the case with cypress of this size and in this setting. See the previous Dec 31, 2018 Blog post for a photo of the recently placed La Purchase Bicentennial Legacy Plaque placed near this majestic cypress, proclaiming "Alive in 1812". It appears the Grandma tree was already at least 400 years old at the time of Louisiana's statehood.
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| Grandma Tree Boring--Closely spaced rings above ruler show very slow yearly growth |
A boring was also taken from a second cypress tree near the Tickfaw State Park Boat Launch in Gum Bayou. (Pictured also in previous blog post)
GPS: N30.22.714 , W090.30.140
Here's what we found:
Circumference at Buttress: Approx. 20"1"
Trunk circumference above buttress: Approx. 14' (used for age determination)
Boring length: 2.75 inches
Rings counted: Approx. 75
75 rings / x = 2.75" boring / 27" trunk radius
x (total projected rings) = approx. 736
Projected age 600 + years
Similar to the Grandma Tree (located off Canoe Launch Road near the campsite), this grand old cypress is projected to be over 600 years old. As seen in the bore photo below, this tree also is very slow growing-- faintly visible ringsabove the ruler are very closely spaced.
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| boring of Gum Bayou Tree |
