In Search of Fairies

Worlds Largest Myrtle Tree

Just ten miles east of Gold Beach stands Oregon’s largest known Myrtle tree, an enormous deciduous specimen that reaches 88 feet tall with a sprawling 70 foot canopy. Myrtle trees (also known as Myrtlewood or California Bay Laurel) are specifically adapted for fire; the roots can survive even the fiercest blaze and will sprout new trunks after the smoke has cleared. This Myrtle is estimated to have 200-year-old branches, a 400-year-old trunk and a root system so old that the experts won’t even take a guess. Its colossal, moss-covered trunk has been hollowed by fires over the centuries, giving the tree a mystical quality that will have you searching for fairies. 

On a darker note, The tree is a host of the pathogen that causes sudden oak death.