Although not recognized by many laypeople, trees are actually a specialized plant. The Plant Kingdom itself is very diverse, encompassing over 270,000 different species. Trees represent the plants with a large woody main trunk and a distinct crown. Most trees tend to exceed 10 feet in height. Many of us appreciate trees for their pastoral beauty, or because they provide oxygen through photosynthesis. Yet, trees are important for another reason: they give indications of climatic history.

Information about our past climate is stored in the trunks of trees within tree rings. These markings are formed as part of the natural growth process. The study of tree rings to interprete past climate is called Dendroclimatology. Read on to learn more about the climatic variations in our changing planet.