What is Pando?
Pando, the Tree That Inspired Pando Coffee
When we were searching for a name that would uniquely represent our coffee roasting business, we explored local inspirations, and Pando emerged as a remarkable natural wonder right in our backyard. We were inspired by Pando’s ability to thrive for thousands of years as a single interconnected organism, symbolizing resilience and interconnectedness within nature. The idea of such a resilient, enduring entity resonated with our vision for quality, sustainability, and community.
The World’s Largest Tree
In the Fishlake basin in central Utah stands the world’s largest tree, Pando, a quaking aspen clone comprised of over 40,000 branches or trunks. Trunks that which appear to us as individual trees, but are in fact, genetically identical parts of a single tree connected by a massive, interconnected root system that spans 106 acres. Learn more about Pando here.
Pando’s Discovery
Even though people have used Pando’s homeland for commerce, hunting and, a summer retreat for at least 1,500 years, Pando wasn’t “discovered” until 1976 when aspen ecologists Burton Barnes and Jerry Kemperman noticed the outline of the tree as they flew over the Fishlake basin. In 1992 the tree was nicknamed “Pando” (Latin for “I spread”). In 2008, researchers Jennifer DeWoody (US Forest Service), Karen Mock (Utah State University), Valerie Hipkins and Carol Rowe gathered material and conducted genetic test which confirmed Pando’s true size and scale of operation. Learn more about Pando’s discovery and work to care for it here.
Pando Facts
- Largest tree by weight, 13.2 million pounds
- Largest tree by land mass, 106-acres
- The World’s largest aspen clone: 106 acres
- Estimated age: 9,000 years old.
- Estimated number of genetically identical trunks: 47,000
- Number of Leaves: 1 Billion Leaves
- Amount of Sunlight that Powers Pando: Enough to power 200 homes a day
- Amount of Water Pando Receives During Peak Growing Season: 10.7 Million Gallons a week
To learn more about the work we support to study and protect the tree, visit: