Olive Tree of Mouchão

39°28′23.59″N 8°04′51.41″W / 39.4732194°N 8.0809472°W / 39.4732194; -8.0809472

The Olive Tree of Mouchão (Portuguese: Oliveira do Mouchão) is a tree of the species Olea europaea, considered a Tree of Public Interest since 2007. It is located in the parish of Mouriscas, a municipality of Abrantes, Portugal.[1] It came in second place for the Tree of the Year in both 2020 and 2021.[2]

Age

In 2016, José Luís Lousada, a researcher at the University of Trás-os-Montes and Alto Douro, estimated the tree's age at approximately 3350 years using dendrometry—the measurement of tree dimensions such as trunk diameter. However, dendrometry alone cannot determine the precise age of a tree, especially in ancient olive trees where internal hollowing and variable growth rates complicate direct measurement.[3][4] According to this assessment with an estimate age precision of 2%, it is considered the oldest tree in Portugal.[5][6][7] It is additionally one of the oldest olive trees in the world.[5]

Etymology

Its name derives from mouchão fishing, since from the beginning of the 20th century, fishermen would gather at the tree before going fishing.[1]

See also

References

  1. ^ a b ICNF. "Ficha da Árvore de Interesse Público. Nº Processo: KNJ1/478. Classificação: Aviso nº 4 de 02/01/2007".
  2. ^ "Árvore do Ano – Árvore do ano 2021". portugal.treeoftheyear.eu. Retrieved 2022-06-09.
  3. ^ Cherubini, Paolo (2013). "Olive tree-ring problematic dating: A comparative analysis on Santorini (Greece)". PLOS ONE. 8 (1): e54730. Bibcode:2013PLoSO...854730C. doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0054730. PMC 3557290. PMID 23382949.
  4. ^ Ehrlich, Leonard (2017). "Radiocarbon Dating of an Olive Tree Cross-Section: New Insights on Growth Patterns and Implications for Age Estimation of Olive Trees". Frontiers in Plant Science. 8: 1918. Bibcode:2017FrPS...08.1918E. doi:10.3389/fpls.2017.01918. PMC 5686044. PMID 29176987.
  5. ^ a b SAPO. "Oliveira do Mouchão: é a mais antiga em Portugal e tem mais de 3 mil anos". SAPO Viagens (in Portuguese). Retrieved 2022-06-09.
  6. ^ "Declaration" (PDF). Institute for Nature Conservation and Forests (in Portuguese). Archived from the original (PDF) on 4 November 2016.
  7. ^ "FLORESTAS — ICNF" (in Portuguese). Archived from the original on 9 August 2018. Retrieved 3 November 2016.


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