2006-09-26 05:53:40 · 12 answers · asked by Anonymous in Science & Mathematics ➔ Botany
Try asking it. If you are a dryad or an elf, you ought to be able to converse with all manner of plant life. Barring that, just take a core sample and count the rings.
2006-09-27 07:16:09 · answer #1 · answered by Anonymous · 1⤊ 0⤋
How can you tell how old a tree is?
There are actually a couple of answers for this question. The procedure used to find the age of a tree will depend on whether the tree is living or dead.
If the tree is no longer living, you can cut it down. In the place where you made the cut, look for the rings in the trunk. Each ring equals one year. Look closely because some of the rings may be difficult to see. Some of the rings may be smaller than others. That's OK. Each ring, no matter how big or small, equals a year.
The age of a living tree is difficult to discover unless you have an increment borer. This is a small tool that drills (bores) a small hole into the tree and pulls out a a core of the wood. Once you have the core, you can count the rings on it and determine how old the tree is. Some trees have rings you can easily see. To count the rings for some species, you may need magnification and/or staining with an ink dye to be able to count the rings.
Increment borers cut only a small hole (about the diameter of a pencil) and do not harm the tree. They are most often used by arborists and foresters.
If your tree is a pine tree, you can estimate its age by counting the whorls (places where branches have grown out each year). The number of whorls will give you the age of the tree. However, this only works with pine trees ... fir and spruce trees don't work the same way.
the only real way to know the age of a tree is to count the rings ... other methods will give you only an estimate.
2006-09-26 13:03:19 · answer #2 · answered by ekodamnednation 1 · 0⤊ 0⤋
The most accurate is by counting the rings in the trunk of the tree. Unfortunately, this results in the death of the tree, as it requires that the tree be cut down. However, based on the type of tree and size , both height and circumference, an approximation can be made that will likely get you within a few years accuracy. A forrester or botanist would likely be able to determine the age based on this information.
2006-09-26 13:03:33 · answer #3 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
Yes! you count the rings but you DON'T have to cut the tree down. You can use a tool which looks like a hollow tube maybe 1cm in diameter which you screw into the thickest part of the trunk aiming for the centre. When you pull it out, you are able to count the rings
2006-09-26 13:10:04 · answer #4 · answered by Legend 3 · 1⤊ 0⤋
According to dendrology (study of trees)
counting the rings(of life) in the trunk
2006-09-26 22:35:31 · answer #5 · answered by spyblitz 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋
DENDROCHRONOLOGY is the study which deals with determination of age of trees by countin the rings. all the rings r not similar, there r alternatin light and dark ones. the light ring represents the spring season (spring wood) and the dark one represents the autumn season(autumn wood).1 dark ring + 1 light ring makes an year. thus we can count the age of that tree.
to determine the age, we dont hav to cut the tree,but there is a tool by which we cud take a cross section of it. sorry i dont know its name. thanks
2006-09-27 06:27:01 · answer #6 · answered by chinnu 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
By counting the growth rings in the trunk.
2006-09-26 13:01:29 · answer #7 · answered by AzOasis8 6 · 0⤊ 0⤋
You have to count the rings on the inside of the trunk.
2006-09-26 13:02:02 · answer #8 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
count the rings from center out or same principle for core sample
2006-09-26 20:58:05 · answer #9 · answered by bluefairymyst 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋
the rings
when u cut it count the rings from the center
2006-09-26 12:55:28 · answer #10 · answered by His 5 · 0⤊ 0⤋