Scientists have mapped the gene sequence of Norway spruce (the Christmas tree) -- a species with huge economic and ecological importance -- and that is the largest genome to have ever been mapped.

Not to mention, the Norway spruce can live for hundreds of years. The oldest tree in the world, nicknamed Old Tjikko, grew in Sweden and lived to be over 9,550 years old, according to Weitoish.

For this, we applied molecular species identification and stable isotope tracking to both soil and decaying wood in an unmanaged boreal Norway spruce-dominated stand.