Friends of Pando

06/15/2026

What We Can Do: Restore
In 2024, in collaboration with our neighbors, and our partners at Fishlake National Forest and Utah DWR, Friends of Pando worked to removed some 4,000 cubic feet of Juniper bush overgrowth in a small area of the tree (0.13 acre). Juniper bush can starve the forest floor of sunlight which stymies the development and growth of light hungry baby shoots of Pando. Revisiting the site, we have documented small patches of new growth taking up where once, Juniper bush dominated the light, water and nutrient balance in the area. This pilot study shows one of many ways---big and small we can protect and restore Pando and help promote balance throughout the expanse of this ancient Utah Wonder.

06/13/2026

Travel.Advisory: Our partners, Fishlake National Forest have issued a Stage 1 Fire Restriction for the Fishlake National Forest, which includes Pando. Please be advised that violations of the restriction include both civil liability and potential crimal charges. Please read the public notice and share with those who will be in the area.

https://www.fs.usda.gov/r04/fishlake/alerts/stage-1-fire-restrictions?fbclid=IwY2xjawSZoFBleHRuA2FlbQIxMQBzcnRjBmFwcF9pZA80MDk5NjI2MjMwODU2MDkAAR5PUWRtXT77huvwYIabiTNXxT2NIvt17ysaOZNX88VXxKxGuZpSPZ7fOJmQwA_aem_tQR72D5gZSIbKWXa6cLGtw

The order will be effective starting June 12 at 12:01am and will be in place until October 31st, 2026, or until rescinded.

06/08/2026

🌲 Lend a Hand to the Largest Living Thing on Earth
Ever wanted to get your hands dirty protecting an ancient Utah wonder? Here's your chance.

Join Friends of Pando on Saturday, June 13th for a day of hands-on conservation inside Pando — the 9,000-year-old aspen grove and one of the oldest, largest living organisms on the planet. We'll be rolling out and clipping fencing to protect new growth and give the next generation of Pando a chance to thrive.

No experience needed. Just bring your energy and a willingness to help.
📍 Where: Fish Lake, Utah
🗓️ When: Saturday, June 13th · 9am–5pm
🌱 What: Rolling out protective fencing to safeguard Pando's regrowth
👥 Who: You, friends, and family welcome! (No pets, please)
We provide everything you need: training, tools, safety gear, snacks, drinks, and a cool commemorative shirt. We can also supply letters of acknowledgment for tax-deductible mileage and travel costs.
Spend a beautiful high-mountain day among the spring foliage — and leave knowing you helped protect a true natural wonder.
👉 Sign up today: https://www.friendsofpando.org/volunteer/

Friends of Pando needs your help educating the public and supporting research about the world's largest tree. Learn how your skills and talents can help.

06/02/2026

Tremendous Facts about the World's Largest Tree: Spring typically arrives in Pando starting in late May when temperatures warm and sugars stored the previous Fall and gathered over winter (Pando's bark has chlorophyll)---surge through the vast interconnected root system first creating buds, which then begin to unfold as the days warm. All told, Friends of Pando estimates 1-1.5 Billion leaves unfurl, a process that takes weeks across the tree's landmass. As those leaves unfold and reach maturity, they will grow to harvest enough sunlight to power 191 homes a day!

05/31/2026

In Utah June 13th? Come Help Pando Directly — We'd Love Your Help!

Have you ever dreamed of standing beneath Pando in person? Of using your own two hands to protect one of the oldest, most remarkable living things on Earth? Here's your chance! Friends of Pando is hosting a Community Forestry Day on Saturday, June 13th, and we'd be thrilled to have you join us. Crews will unroll and clip quick wildlife controls as part of an exciting five-year plan to protect the next generation of this incredible tree.

And there's plenty in it for you, too! Friends of Pando will keep you fueled with drinks and snacks throughout the day, and every single crew member earns a commemorative t-shirt to remember their day of service. Best of all, every volunteer is invited to a free crew education tour of Pando on Sunday, June 14th — a special chance to walk among the trees and discover everything we're doing to care for this living wonder.

So bring a friend, bring the whole family, and be part of something truly special. The work is easy, the company is great, and you'll leave knowing you made a real difference. We can't wait to see you there!

https://www.friendsofpando.org/volunteer/

Friends of Pando needs your help educating the public and supporting research about the world's largest tree. Learn how your skills and talents can help.

05/30/2026

A new kind of community forestry: it takes all kinds to help protect, monitor, and inspire stewardship of an ancient Utah wonder. Scientists and artists, entrepreneurs and foundations, policymakers and tree huggers. Each day, Friends of Pando works to identify challenges and opportunities, plan projects, and solve problems—each contributing in their own way to get big things done. Visit our Sponsors and Partners page to meet the folks who each do a little to help take care of a lot.

Friends of Pando's work would not be possible without the generous support of our partners, sponsors and many donors. Learn more here.

05/27/2026

Tremendous Facts about the worlds largest tree: Spring comes to 9,000 ft starting in late May when snows melt and stop and the days grow warmer. It is this time of year, we begin to see the bright green leaves of the Pando Tree begin to unfurl and mature. From the time buds appear (between mid-April to mid-May depending on weather)--- to the time the leaves reach their full size and darker summer color takes around 6 weeks. Estimates from generalized energy models on suggests 200,000 calories per hour flow through Pando's interconnected root system and into the trunks during this period. In human terms, that's enough to feed 80-100 people every hour, or feed 84,000 people over a roughly six week period!

05/26/2026

Helping inspire the next generation: Did you know Friends of Pando makes activity guides and resource materials freely available to educators:? Today, 17 sites around the world are helping teach the next generation of stewards about Pando and how we can take care of it. If you have an institutional email, use the link below to request a free copy of our Pando actvity guide today.

Kids for Pando contains Information, activities and educational guides for K-12 students. Everyone has a role to play no matter your age.

05/23/2026

Rooted in Science: Friends of Pando collaborates with Federal, State and Community Organizations to study, plan and organize work to take care of the tree. In May we worked to undertake plot studies on areas where we see opportunties to better protect and advantage Pando.

05/22/2026

Rooted in research, restoring Wonder: Friend of Pando host artist from Utah and around the world to create original works of art about this ancient wonder. In 2023, we hosted renowned documentary photography and film maker, Mitch Epstein in support of his work on the book "Old Growth". While an artist in his own right, Mitch Epstein's work documenting famous trees represented a new domain of work for he, which was inspired in part by his contemporary and friend Robert Adams (a pioneer in New Topographics). From Epsteins retrospective essay:

"Pando creates an illusion of infinity that called to mind the labyrinthinian and disorienting space of a mirrored fun house. With that in mind, I explored Pando from multiple vantages, looking for opportunities to communicate this sense of infinity in my photographs. Working with an 8×10 field camera, I was able to photograph Pando’s layered spatial depth. Pando is all the more remarkable as a botanical phenomenon because much of it grows out of volcanic rock. Trees that grow out of rocks are a small miracle."

The role of art and forest conservation are deeply entwined, and the Artist in Residence Program honors---welcoming artist, who work to help us better appreciate what it means to live in a work where Pando is possible.