[NatureNS] A weighty tree

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Date: Wed, 18 May 2016 19:06:30 -0300
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A storm a few years ago brought down a big spruce in the forest behind 
our house. In falling, the tree bumped up against, and landed on, 
various other neighbouring trees, pressing some of them flat and causing 
others to lean at odd angles.

I was wondering just how much a big tree like that might weigh, so today 
I went out and measured it.

The broken-off part (above the stump) is about 75' long (forgive the 
Imperial measure), and the circumference at the base of the broken-off 
part is 5'7". Modelling the stem as a cone, that gives a volume of 60.6 
cubic feet. Using a typical density for green (i.e. not dried) spruce of 
34 lb/cubic foot, I get a weight of the stem alone of slightly over 2000 
lb., or one ton.

Of course the branches and needles would add more weight, but I don't 
have a good figure for that. It would depend upon just how bushy the 
tree was. I'd be happy to say somewhere around 500 pounds, though.

A big tree!

Peter Payzant
Waverley

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