Winner of the Jacques Barzun Prize in Cultural History

‘A masterful blend of natural and human history . . . Farmer’s Elderflora aren’t just amazing old organisms, but a backdrop against which human drama, hubris and decency play out.’ – New Scientist

‘Fascinating’ –The Observer

Elderflora is a deeply researched and lyrically written exploration of the world’s oldest trees, and the powerful roles they have played, and continue to play, in human history. Historian Jared Farmer traces our long-standing reverence for ancient trees, revealing how, from the eighteenth century onwards, naturalists and explorers sought out the planet’s oldest living organisms, determined to measure and understand “tree time”.

This shift in thinking inspired travellers to visit extraordinary specimens and spurred conservationists to defend sacred groves. Yet it also coincided with the widespread destruction of old-growth forests through imperial expansion and industrial progress, placing many of the world’s great trees at risk even as they were being celebrated.

Travelling from Lebanon’s storied cedars to New Zealand’s kauri giants and the bristlecones of California, Farmer unravels a complex history shaped by Indigenous knowledge, religious traditions, scientific discovery, and environmental loss.

At its heart, Elderflora asks what ancient trees can teach us about resilience, time, and responsibility. In an era of climate crisis, Farmer reminds us that securing a long future for our forests depends on caring for the young trees that may one day become elders themselves.

A sweeping, illuminating and quietly urgent book for readers of environmental history, nature writing, and the stories held in the world’s most extraordinary trees.