Old Tjikko
A small spruce on Fulufjallet whose root system has been dated to around 9,550 years, cloning itself since the ice left.
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The tree itself is a modest spruce a few metres high on the exposed Fulufjallet plateau, and nothing about the trunk is ancient - it is decades old at most. What was dated, by Leif Kullman's team using radiocarbon on material under it, is the root system, at around 9,550 years, which would make it a clonal organism that has been regenerating on the same spot since shortly after the ice retreated. Spruce in this position grows as low krummholz, and when a stem dies the roots send up another, so the visible plant is replaced repeatedly while the genetic individual persists. The location is given roughly rather than precisely to protect it.
What you actually see
- A small spruce on open plateau - the visible stem is young.
- A root system dated to about 9,550 years - the clonal individual.
- Krummholz growth - low and wind-shaped at this altitude.
- A deliberately vague location - guided walks in summer.
When to go
June to September, when the plateau is walkable. A full day.
Honest expectations
The tree is visually unremarkable - the interest is entirely in the dating. It is a long walk up onto exposed ground. The exact site is not signposted. Weather on the plateau is severe and changeable.
Nearby
Njupeskar is off the eastern edge; the naturum is at Morkret.
What to pack for Old Tjikko
Chosen from what this place is for. Tap a kit for the full checklist.
Opening times, ticket prices and seasonal closures change - check the official source before you go: official site.
