[cwmoore]

They do wave in the wind, and evolution is likely capturing some of that motion for work.

[hetspookjee]

Not sure if you’ve ever visited the groves in California where these huge trees grow but they seem to find the place where the wind doesn’t really seem to bother them, among other reasons (fog staying and little creeks terminating are others). And when the wind comes along it’s surprising how little they actually wave. Such tiny radii change I reckon cannot move much water like you’d need for a pumping notion. So I’d say it has barely if any an influence

[cwmoore]

Watching trees not move much is a low standard for proof—maybe you misunderstood the intent of my comment.

If it isn’t upthread, the seminal research on the mechanism (Cohesion Tension Theory) is from 1894:

https://www.jstor.org/stable/91804

[cwmoore]

I have seen trees before too, anecdotally, my random naysayer.