What is the oldest tree in Cadiz?

Cadiz's oldest tree with a documented planting date is the Ficus macrophylla of the Alameda Apodaca, planted in 1903 on the seafront promenade. The city's dragon tree in Parque Genoves may be older, estimated at 100 to 200 years, but no planting record confirms an exact date.

Cadiz's remarkable trees come almost entirely from its history as a trading port rather than from any native old-growth woodland. The Alameda Apodaca's fig, planted in 1903, has the most specific documented date on this list, tied to a local legend about missionary nuns carrying saplings from India. Parque Genoves, an inland 19th century garden built specifically to display botanical imports, holds four more candidates: a dragon tree whose age is genuinely disputed between 100 and 200 years, since the city lost its older, more confidently dated dragon tree to a 2013 storm collapse; a pohutukawa reported as the oldest documented specimen of its species in Europe; an ombu whose water-swollen trunk cannot be aged by growth rings at all; and a floss silk tree from South America. Two more fig saplings from the same 1903 planting stand near the old Hospital de Mora, half a city away from their Alameda-front twins, sharing the same disputed nickname, Ficus Gemelos. All are free to visit.

Read the full story of The Dragon Tree of Parque Genoves, or see all 5 remarkable ancient trees in Cadiz.

One of Cadiz's trees also appears in Europe's Best Tree City Trips, a themed collection spanning several cities.

Over 3,200 old trees worth the walk

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