EcoWorld - Trees

A single mature Banyan Tree will have many trunks and support roots which gives the appearance of a forest of separate trees. A single tree can spread to cover well over an acre (.5 hectares), the largest, in Sri Lanka, covers just over two acres (1 hectares).

The Banyan Tree can begin it's life in the top branches of palms and other trees where perhaps a bird dropped a seed. The seed sprouts and eventually the branches will send roots down to the ground. These supports will grow into trunks which in turn develop new branches and new arial roots and so on. The original host tree will eventually be strangled out and only the Banyan Tree will remain. The wood of the banyan tree is soft and very porous, the sap is a white sticky latex.

Height: up to 100 feet (30.5 meters).

Lifespan: possibly over a thousand years although the age of the Banyan Tree is difficult to determine due to the fact that the original trunk is usually hidden by years of arial or support root growth.

Habitat and Range: The Banyan Tree grows in India and adjacent countries. It prefers areas of high humidity and moist soils.

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TREES SOURCE: U.S. Forest Service U.S.D.A. National Parks Service National Parks Service
Banyan Tree Photo: Guenther Eichhorn