I was looking at the following web page which lists trees for
sale.

http://www.j-bonsai.com/collections.html

Some of the trees are listed as 400, 800 and 1,000 years old.
My wife
wanted to know how you could prove that the trees are that old.

Anyone know?



In some cases -- not many, I'm sure -- the province of a
masterwork tree is known, from owner to owner back into the
distant past -- though 1000 years seems a tad excessive. ;-)

Other cited ages are no more than guestimates (at least for live
trees; someone could kill the tree and do a C14 test, I suppose,
or could have bored a core out of the trunk -- damaging the tree)
and you need to allow for a considerable amount or exaggeration.
Especially for trees that are being offered for sale.

The simple answer is: You can't.

Buyer beware!

Jim Lewis - - Tallahassee, FL - Our life is
frittered away by detail . . . . Simplify! Simplify. -- Henry
David Thoreau - Walden

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