Randy Olson, Melissa Farlow Photography

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A lone Chilean palm in Oasis de la Campana, an ecological reserve established to save the endangered Chilean palm tree. The oldest Chilean palm in the reserve is 1,200 years, and many of the larger ones photographed are 400-700 years old. There are 2,000 on the reserve and 8000 in the nearby park that are not protected. Once prevalent throughout Chile, the palms were decimated during the 19th century, felled for their sugar-sweet sap.
Years ago Spaniards cut the taller trees to run cattle, plant crops on the land and to burn wood for charcoal. The 1828-meter peak of Cerro La Campana or Bell Mountain is in the background.

Copyright
MELISSA FARLOW
Image Size
5226x3600 / 4.7MB
Keywords
Contained in galleries
Long Road South BOOK_National Geographic 1/1999
A lone Chilean palm in Oasis de la Campana, an ecological reserve established to save the endangered Chilean palm tree. The oldest Chilean palm in the reserve is 1,200 years, and many of the larger ones photographed are 400-700 years old. There are 2,000 on the reserve and 8000 in the nearby park that are not protected. Once prevalent throughout Chile, the palms were decimated during the 19th century, felled for their sugar-sweet sap. <br /> Years ago Spaniards cut the taller trees to run cattle, plant crops on the land and to burn wood for charcoal. The 1828-meter peak of Cerro La Campana or Bell Mountain is in the background.