In yesterday’s post<\/a> I mention a long connection I have with dawn redwoods, despite only recently becoming acquainted. The dawn redwoods themselves have a story.<\/p>\n Scientists discovered dawn redwoods by fossil before they found living ones: they were thought to be extinct. They used to be plentiful in North America tens of millions of years back. When scientists found a grove in China in the 1940s, it was a revelation. Dawn redwoods were made accessible to visiting scientists who collected seeds.<\/p>\n In nature, the dawn redwood is endangered: it hangs on in a few wild groves in an area less than 250 square miles in China. Ironically, the dawn redwood is easy to grow, and is planted around the world as a popular ornamental! Hence its presence less than a block from where I live, even given its rarity in the wild.<\/p>\n A common name for dawn redwood is metasequoia. In our area, the dawn redwood is a grand, yet demure tree. I will tell its characteristics – and how I identified it – in a coming post:)<\/p>\n Source:<\/p>\n www.botanic.cam.ac.uk<\/a><\/p>\n ufi.ca.uky.edu<\/a><\/p>\n www.arborday.org<\/a><\/p>\nJack of Oracle Tutoring by Jack and Diane,<\/a> Campbell River, BC.\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Self-tutoring about botany: the tutor shares an exciting find from the field. In yesterday’s post I mention a long connection I have with dawn redwoods, despite only recently becoming acquainted. The dawn redwoods themselves have a story. Scientists discovered dawn …<\/p>\n