Question

Dendrochronology is the study of?
A. Height of a tree
B. Diameter of a tree
C. Age of a tree with the help of annual rings
D. Counting the number of branches

Answer 1

“Dendro” is a word used to describe a tree which has branches above some level from the ground. Chronology means studying a pattern or events happening in a pattern. So Dendrochronology is related to the study of patterns of tree trunk (because it is just above some level from the ground). Dendrochronology is related to studying the pattern of the trunk of the trees’ annual ring.

Complete answer:
-Just as we date the carbon-based organisms with the help of Carbon dating, also known as Radiocarbon-dating, to calculate the age of the trees, we use a method in which growth rings from a horizontal section of the tree are counted.
-These growth rings help scientists to calculate the age of a tree.
-The study of the age of a tree with the help of growth rings or annual rings is known as Dendrochronology.
-The growth ring at the trunk of a tree is formed as a result of divisions or growth in Vascular Cambium.
-Secondary growth of a tree involves the formation of annual rings. These annual rings are a result of seasonal changes.
-One ring depicts one year of life in the tree’s life.
-The newest ring appears most close or adjacent to the bark of the tree.
-A long and wide ring shows that the tree had enough moisture to survive the respective season while a narrow ring supports the fact that it might have been drought or the tree must not have the adequate moisture to survive that time of year.

-When the tree grows rapidly, the rings formed are less dense than these rings constitute “springwood”, or “earlywood”. But when the tree grows slowly in the summer or autumn season, the rings are dense and the wood is called “summer wood”.
-Dendrochronology can also be used to determine the climate of a particular area by examining the horizontal section of the trunk of the trees of that respective area.

Hence, the correct answer is option (C).

Note: Dendrochronology is an important field of study for scientists as it helps to determine the age of very old trees and can also help to confirm the age of a carbon-based organism whose age has been previously calculated by Radiocarbon-Dating. Mainly temperate region trees show a major difference in the formation of annual rings due to the immense difference between the climate conditions they experience.