Thimmamma Marrimanu – The Biggest Tree Canopy on the Planet

Thimmamma Marrimanu in India is world’s largest banyan tree. It appears to be an entire forest, with Its canopy covers 19,107 m2 (4.721 acres). In 1989 it was recorded as the largest tree specimen in the world in the Guinness Book of World Records . According to a local myth, the tree is named after Thimmamma, a woman who committed sati (suicide by throwing herself on the funeral pyre of her husband’s dead body). The tree is said to have originated from one of the poles used in the funeral pyre. Thimmamma Marrimanu contains a small temple at its base and is still worshiped to this day by the local community.

Satellite view of Thimmamma Marrimanu MAP DATA © 2017 Google (CREATIVE COMMONS)

Abdulkaleem md, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons