How Long Do Conifers Live?
Conifers are trees and shrubs such as pine and spruce trees that generally produce seeds in cones instead of berries or flowers. The evergreens especially are prized in landscapes for their year-round color. Conifers are generally hardy plants that can withstand extreme growing conditions; their more than 500 species are found in nearly every climate on Earth. Conifers are also considered the longest-lived woody plants on the planet, older than flowering plants by millions of years.
Conifers are known for their longevity, with pines among the oldest trees on Earth. Ponderosa pines, common throughout the western United States, have a lifespan of 300 to 500 years, with an 800-year-old tree documented in Utah. The oldest-known trees in the U.S. are bristlecone pines, another native of western states, which are documented at more than 2,000 years old. The oldest tree in the U.S. is a bristlecone pine in the White Mountains of California, appropriately nicknamed “Methuselah,” which is said to be more than 4,700 years old.
California’s storied redwood trees are probably best-known as the tallest trees in the world, towering 350 to 400 feet tall. The conifers are a fast-growing tree, growing 3 to 5 feet per year in the first five years and reaching 90 feet tall by 25 years. The average life span of a redwood tree is more than 600 years. Only two species of redwood trees are still found in North America, the coast redwood and the giant sequoia.
Spruce trees are native to the western United States and Canada. The Colorado blue spruce, also called the silver spruce, was first discovered on Pikes Peak in 1862. Blue spruce can live 800 years. White spruce has a life expectancy of 200 or more years, with some 300-year-old specimens documented in Manitoba, Canada. The Norway spruce is found from the central United States into Canada; despite being widespread, it has the shortest life span, rarely living longer than 220 years.
Junipers are evergreen conifers that produce distinctive berries that aren’t fruit but are actually cones. The berries are typically blue or blue-purple, but can also be red or copper-colored. There are three types of junipers native to the Pacific Northwest, Rocky Mountain juniper, Western juniper and common juniper. Junipers produce a strong odor that is noticeable from a distance. They are not as long-lived as other conifers, typically living approximately 150 years.
- American Conifer Society: Introduction to Conifers
- Armstrong Atlantic State University: Conifer Garden
- University of Nebraska-Lincoln: Maxwell Arboretum: Deciduous Conifers
- Iowa State University Extension: Bristlecone Pine: A Novel Conifer with an Ancient History
- San Francisco State University: Redwood Forest
- Bellarmine University: Blue Spruce
- Province of Manitoba: Identifying Manitoba’s Provincial Tree: White Spruce
KW Schumer is an award-winning newspaper editor, reporter and writer with more than 15 years of experience working for large, mid-sized and community newspaper companies. She also writes the food blog Chef HJ's Table with her husband, a professional chef and the director and chef-instructor of a culinary school.