Luna (Redwood Tree)
Encyclopedia
Luna is the American name given to a coast redwood tree in October 1997. This tree has also been referred to as the 'Stafford Giant.' The tree is between 600 and 1000 years old and lives in an old growth forest
--Headwaters Forest
, in Humboldt County, California
near the small community of Stafford, California.
The tree was named by a group of Earth First!
members, who built a small platform from salvaged wood to serve as a tree-sit platform. They chose the Latin
word for "moon
" to commemorate the event. Although many refer to the tree as "she," giant redwoods produce both male and female cones.http://www.lavc.edu/Huang/Campus%20trees/Edith%20Martin%20Giant%20Redwood.htm The sex of giant redwoods such as Luna is technically neither male nor female, but monoecious
.
The tree was where Julia Butterfly Hill
lived in the tree for 738 days. Hill lived on a platform, 180 feet above the forest floor (approximately equivalent to a building 18 stories high). She descended from the tree on December 18, 1999.
Hill occupied the tree, "Luna", in order to save the grove from being clear-cut by the Pacific Lumber Company
(owned by Maxxam Inc and Charles Hurwitz).
In November of 2000, an unknown vandal used a chainsaw
to cut halfway through the tree. Civil engineer Steve Salzman designed a system to help the tree withstand the extreme windstorms which frequent the Northern California
hillside, at speeds which peak between 60 and 100 miles per hour.
"Tree climbers (led by redwood canopy biologist Dr. Stephen C. Sillett and South American canopy expert Paul Donahue) installed a steel cable "collar" around Luna's main trunk 100 feet above the ground. Four cables radiate from this collar and are attached with turnbuckles to four remote anchor points 100-150 feet away. With this cable assembly in place, Luna should be able to withstand the fiercest of storms."
Julia Butterfly Hill wrote a book: about her experiences in the giant redwood.
Luna is under the stewardship of Sanctuary Forest, a Nonprofit Organization
.
Old growth forest
An old-growth forest is a forest that has attained great age , and thereby exhibits unique ecological features. An old growth forest has also usually reached a climax community...
--Headwaters Forest
Headwaters Forest
The Headwaters Forest Reserve is a series of old growth Coast Redwood groves measuring about . Located in the Northern California coastal forests ecoregion near Humboldt Bay of the U.S. state of California, most of it was owned by the now defunct Pacific Lumber Company, which was owned by Charles...
, in Humboldt County, California
Humboldt County, California
Humboldt County is a county in the U.S. state of California, located on the far North Coast 200 miles north of San Francisco. According to 2010 Census Data, the county’s population was 134,623...
near the small community of Stafford, California.
The tree was named by a group of Earth First!
Earth First!
Earth First! is a radical environmental advocacy group that emerged in the Southwestern United States in 1979. It was co-founded on April 4th, 1980 by Dave Foreman, Mike Roselle, Howie Wolke, and less directly, Bart Koehler and Ron Kezar....
members, who built a small platform from salvaged wood to serve as a tree-sit platform. They chose the Latin
Latin
Latin is an Italic language originally spoken in Latium and Ancient Rome. It, along with most European languages, is a descendant of the ancient Proto-Indo-European language. Although it is considered a dead language, a number of scholars and members of the Christian clergy speak it fluently, and...
word for "moon
Moon
The Moon is Earth's only known natural satellite,There are a number of near-Earth asteroids including 3753 Cruithne that are co-orbital with Earth: their orbits bring them close to Earth for periods of time but then alter in the long term . These are quasi-satellites and not true moons. For more...
" to commemorate the event. Although many refer to the tree as "she," giant redwoods produce both male and female cones.http://www.lavc.edu/Huang/Campus%20trees/Edith%20Martin%20Giant%20Redwood.htm The sex of giant redwoods such as Luna is technically neither male nor female, but monoecious
Plant sexuality
Plant sexuality covers the wide variety of sexual reproduction systems found across the plant kingdom. This article describes morphological aspects of sexual reproduction of plants....
.
The tree was where Julia Butterfly Hill
Julia Butterfly Hill
Julia Butterfly Hill is an American activist and environmentalist. Hill is best known for living in a -tall, roughly 1500-year-old California Redwood tree for 738 days between December 10, 1997 and December 18, 1999...
lived in the tree for 738 days. Hill lived on a platform, 180 feet above the forest floor (approximately equivalent to a building 18 stories high). She descended from the tree on December 18, 1999.
Hill occupied the tree, "Luna", in order to save the grove from being clear-cut by the Pacific Lumber Company
Pacific Lumber Company
The Pacific Lumber Company, officially abbreviated PALCO, was one of California's major logging and sawmill operations, located south of Eureka and north of San Francisco. The once storied company and its historically positive relationship with conservationists begun in the 1920s was altered...
(owned by Maxxam Inc and Charles Hurwitz).
In November of 2000, an unknown vandal used a chainsaw
Chainsaw
A chainsaw is a portable mechanical saw, powered by electricity, compressed air, hydraulic power, or most commonly a two-stroke engine...
to cut halfway through the tree. Civil engineer Steve Salzman designed a system to help the tree withstand the extreme windstorms which frequent the Northern California
Northern California
Northern California is the northern portion of the U.S. state of California. The San Francisco Bay Area , and Sacramento as well as its metropolitan area are the main population centers...
hillside, at speeds which peak between 60 and 100 miles per hour.
"Tree climbers (led by redwood canopy biologist Dr. Stephen C. Sillett and South American canopy expert Paul Donahue) installed a steel cable "collar" around Luna's main trunk 100 feet above the ground. Four cables radiate from this collar and are attached with turnbuckles to four remote anchor points 100-150 feet away. With this cable assembly in place, Luna should be able to withstand the fiercest of storms."
Julia Butterfly Hill wrote a book: about her experiences in the giant redwood.
Luna is under the stewardship of Sanctuary Forest, a Nonprofit Organization
Nonprofit organization
Nonprofit organization is neither a legal nor technical definition but generally refers to an organization that uses surplus revenues to achieve its goals, rather than distributing them as profit or dividends...
.