It’s the study of tree rings! Dendrochronologists study tree rings to better understand environmental processes and conditions, and to improve our understanding of possible future environmental issues.
But, according to the good folks at the Laboratory of Tree-Ring Research, judging the age of a tree is a lot more complicated than just counting rings.
“Ring-counting does not ensure the accurate dating of each individual ring. Numerous studies illustrate how ring-counting leads to inaccurate conclusions from inaccurate dating.”
If you want to date a tree properly, you should brush up on the preferred method: Crossdating by Skeleton Plotting. Want to learn more? Drop on over to theUniversity of Arizona’s webiste. And happy counting!