Methods for Measuring Tree Heights

Text for this page is extracted from the Tree Registration Manual

Prepared by Ron Flook, the former National Registrar of Notable Trees for the Royal New Zealand Institute of Horticulture.

The total height is the vertical distance in metres from the highest point of the ground at the base of the tree to the highest part of the tree.

There are several methods for measuring trees and they are arranged in order of increasing accuracy:

• Indian Method
• Ruler & String (Treeby & Arthur) Method
• Vertical Angle Method

Indian Method

No equipment is required for this method that was used by primitive tribes to estimate timber height for building their canoes. A supple back is useful.

• Stand with your back to the tree.
• Bend over and look at the tree between your legs.
• Move towards or away from the tree until you can just see the top of the tree. At this point your distance from the tree is approximately equal to the height of the tree. Pace the distance to the tree and convert the paced distance as metres. This is the approximate height of the tree. The Indian method is based on a 45-degree triangle. Length = height.