Trees as Destinations Around the World

One of my new favorite things to do when I travel is find local “culturally significant” trees to visit – the more obscure the better!

The beginning of it all...

The Back Story

It all started with Rodney, a random tree in someone’s front yard in downtown Toronto that someone designated a “cultural landmark” (and had solely 5-star ratings) on Google. My partner had already been to Toronto, so he allowed me to create the majority of our itinerary when we visited in August 2023. I’m not sure whether it was more to his dismay or amusement, but his face when he initially heard about Rodney being added to our list was priceless!

Now, when I find a new place I want to visit or am researching in preparation for a trip, I spend a LOT of time on Google Maps (satellite view) orienting myself geographically, discovering things to do, and finding things I’ve previously saved to check out in the future. Sometimes I get the most bizarre results and find the most unusual landmarks and “attractions” (such as Rodney) – and several of those have already led to some of our most memorable travel experiences to date!

My preoccupation with finding odd or important trees was compounded in the early Spring of 2024, when I heard the story of Stumpy, the cherry blossom tree in Washington, DC. and frantically tried to make sure I visited before “he” was chopped down later that Spring/Summer. Stumpy became a local “celebrity” when a poem was written about him, comparing his appearance to the author’s love life; and this fame spiked when it was announced that March 2024 would feature Stumpy’s LAST BLOOM, as he would be one of many cherry blossom trees to be cut down, and supposedly re-propagated, within the National Mall later that summer (due to rising sea levels).

Stumpy’s last bloom, March 2024

The Trees

Ever since stumbling across Rodney, I started creating a list on Google Maps of unusual, funny, historically important, and/or culturally significant trees in places all over the gworld. So far, this is what I’ve got:

• Rodney the Tree in Toronto, Canada

Rodney in August 2023

• The Hungry Tree in King’s Inns Park in Dublin, Ireland

• The Fairy Lake Bonsai Tree in Port Renfrew, Canada

• The Tower Tree in Greensburg, Indiana

• The Tree in the Road in Brayton, Iowa

• Bonsai Rock in Carson City, Nevada

• The Tree in the Rock in Buford, Wyoming

• The Lone Cypress in Pebble Beach, California

• The Drive-Thru Tree in Leggett, California

• General Sherman Tree in Three Rivers, California

• The Tree of Ténéré in Dallas, Texas

• Chapel Rock in Munising, Michigan

• Jaya Sri Maha Bodhi in Anuradhapura, Sri Lanka

• Thimmamma Marrimanu in Gootibylu, India

• The Oslo Tree in Oslo, Norway

• The Kukumber Tree in Qadub, Yemen

• Bici nell’albero in Sitran, Italy

• The Double Tree in Casorzo Monferrato, Italy

• The Tuning Fork Tree in Sant’Andréa-di-Cotone, France

• Octopus Tree in Tillamook, Oregon

• The National Christmas Tree in Washington, DC

The “National Christmas Tree”… in April 2024

• The Tree That Owns Itself in Athens, Georgia

• The Tree That Owns Itself in Eufala, Alabama

• Boyington Oak Tree in Mobile, Alabama

• The Survivor Tree in New York City

• Seattle’s Giant Sequoia Tree in Seattle, Washington

• The Giant Plane Tree in Telavi, Georgia

• Tree with Beautiful Roots in Thomson Nature Park, Singapore

• Olivo in Marciano, Italy

• Árbol Garoé in Tenerife, Spain

• Pino Piloto in Tenerife, Spain

• The Candler Oak in Savannah, Georgia

• The Tree of Tule in Santa María del Tule, Mexico

• Le Baobab de Majunga in Mahajanga, Madagascar

• Stumpy in Washington, DC (RIP)

Stumpy in April 2024

• Kapok Tree in Málaga, Spain

• The Hardy Tree in London, UK

• The Llangernyw Yew in Llangernyw, UK

• Arbre de Frimousse in Brussels, Belgium

• The Tree of Utah in Barro, Utah

• Cashew of Pirangi in Pirangi do Norte, Brazil

• The Historic Giant Plant of Lisbon in Lisbon, Portugal

• Phytolacca dioica L. - Notable tree in Lisbon, Portugal

• The Erko Street Tree in Sydney, Australia

• The Wishing Tree in Sydney, Australia

The Wishing Tree in the Sydney Botanical Gardens in November 2024

• The Lyons Blue Tree in Canberra, Australia

• The Baob Prison Tree in Derby, Australia

• #ThatWanakaTree in Wānaka, New Zealand

  
  

You may have noted many trees have reviews about how “underwhelming” they are and complaints that “it’s just a tree” – but I don’t think these users appropriately managed their expectations when they decided to visit… That said, some of these sites are easier to get to and/or more “exciting” than others (but unfortunately I have only been to a few in person, so I can’t speak to which ones are more “worth it” to visit… yet) – so be sure to manage those expectations if you add any of these to your itineraries!

Experiences

Of the list above, I personally have visited:

1. Rodney

2. Stumpy

3. The Wishing Tree (Sydney Botanical Gardens)

4. The National Christmas Tree (sort of)

5. *The Candle Oak in Savannah, GA (I think)

As previously discussed, the first “destination tree” I had the privilege of visiting was Rodney in Toronto – who perfectly happened to be a quick walking detour from one of the restaurants on our itinerary that we thoroughly enjoyed (Hanmoto). I don’t know why, but he elicited the most childlike joy out of us when we found him – DEFINITELY worth 5 stars!

The next “destination tree” I got to see was Stumpy – both via FaceTime for his last bloom in March 2024 (thanks to my amazing partner) and in person in April 2024 (complete with matching custom tshirts). My partner scootered around the National Mall 2-3 times before finding Stumpy for me during his last bloom and FaceTimed me so I could feel included; and I made SURE that he was our very first stop during our visit to DC in April 2024.

During the same trip to DC, I stopped by the National Christmas Tree, just to see if it was there (it wasn’t), only to find that, even though the tree itself isn’t permanent, apparently the plaque is…

The last tree on the list I’ve been lucky enough to visit was The Wishing Tree in the Sydney Botanical Gardens during our trip to Australia in November 2024. After reading the plaque, I followed the directions with a friend – however, when we read the part about walking “backwards”, we were unsure of whether it was instructing us to physically walk in reverse or to change directions around the circle, so we did both at the same time to be safe… I can only imagine what onlookers must have been thinking!

I was really hoping to visit The Erko Tree and Lyons Blue Tree while on the same trip to Australia, but unfortunately I couldn’t make either work…

I’m also fairly certain I saw the famous Candler Oak when I went to Savannah back in 2016, but I didn’t take any photos or actively seek it out, like I did with the others.

Significance of Trees

Trees don’t just hold a vital role in our ecosystems, but they frequently hold important “meaning” to individuals, communities, and cultures. Some trees play critical roles in local/regional (or even global, like the case of Jaya Sri Maha Bodhi) history and folklore; others are adored by communities for their abnormality, quirkiness, or fascinating growth; a number of them are historically significant and hold world records or provide evidence of scientific theories (such as plate tectonics); and many hold spiritual or emotional meaning, whether it be personal to individuals (who potentially share this with the world, like Stumpy) or communities of varying sizes (e.g., the Arbre de Frimousse) or even entire cultures (like the Árbol Garoé). Sometimes they are believed to retain metaphysical properties or capabilities; take The Wishing Tree, for example. Though these mystical concepts make many people skeptical, things like the mycelium network are wonderful illustrations of how the scientific community is finding more and more evidence to support some of these “fantastical” beliefs (e.g., that trees can communicate with each other) – suggesting that cynics should keep an open mind about them, especially considering how much we still don’t know about our planet.

In short, the AI overview when you google the “significance of trees” is the following:

Trees are significant for the environment, human health, and culture. They provide food, shade, and clean air, and they help to mitigate climate change. Trees are also a source of spiritual and cultural meaning, and are featured in many mythologies and religions.

Help Me Grow My List

Do you know of any trees in your community (or somewhere you’ve lived/visited) that have a funny or interesting story, hold cultural significance, look completely quirky or out of place, etc.? PLEASE SHARE in the comments; there isn’t enough time in the world for me to closely scan every area of the globe on Google Maps – and not EVERYTHING gets added to it – so this list needs help to be more comprehensive!