Most of the mature trees are between 500 and 800 years old. The world's tallest living thing is a Coastal Redwood located in Redwood National Park. Discovered by the National Geographic Society in 1963, it now measures 367.8 feet tall. The closely related Giant Sequoia grows larger in diameter and greater in bulk but not nearly as tall. Mature cones are reddish-brown, woody, and very small.
Cones mature in one year and drop their seeds in late fall.
Within a month, warm, moist soils may stimulate a seed to germinate. If a seed is on suitable, fresh mineral soil it will root. After the first leaves appear, the seeding will begin to manufacture its own food and may grow to 2 or 3 inches tall the first year. In an established forest such as Muir Woods, burl sprouting accounts for most redwood reproduction. Bacteria and fungi in the forest floor's keep duff layer generally prevent germinated seedlings from reaching the mineral soil.