KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) — The Missouri Department of Conservation has named a new tree as the largest in the state.
The department said Monday an eastern cottonwood tree in Kansas City’s Kessler Park has grown larger than the former champ from the St. Louis area.

The Kansas City cottonwood is more than 9 feet wide through the middle of the trunk and about 125 feet high. Urban forester Chuck Conner measured the tree and says it’s more than 70 years old.

The towering tree’s only potential competition for the title is another cottonwood. Those trees can grow large in a matter of decades.
Only native or naturalized trees are eligible for the honor of being named Missouri’s largest.