In search of ancient trees

A tree with a lifespan of hundreds of years will become large enough and old enough to qualify in a much shorter time than one with a lifetime measured in millennia.

David has the enviable task of travelling around the countryside and towns of Oxfordshire and its neighbouring counties to give an expert judgement on whether a tree that has been nominated as ancient by a member of the public does meet the criteria.

Even if a tree does not qualify as ancient, it may come into one of the two other categories, veteran and notable. A veteran tree is in its middle age and a notable tree is one that is important in its surroundings and perhaps has historical associations.

David has been making these journeys since the Ancient Tree Hunt was launched in June 2007, following an already-established practice of the trust of maintaining records of important trees.

They have taken him to all corners of the county. North of Oxford there are the many ancient trees of Blenheim Park, the oaks there qualifying in terms of age and size and with the added importance of their historic significance.

At Heythrop, where the original church of St Nicholas was built in Norman times, there is an ancient yew tree in the churchyard.

It has a circumference of 7.5 metres and David is looking forward to a future visit here.

Yew trees are not easy to measure, says David, for at the lower levels of the trunk there are branches growing outwards.

Normally, measurements are taken at a point 1.5 metres above the ground. On a straight trunk, it is done without any difficulty.

Yew trees and others with similar growth have to be measured where only the main trunk is accessible.

Yews are a good example of the ancient specimens which the landscape of south Oxfordshire and the Chilterns can reveal.

David said: “There are quite a few around this area, including one at South Moreton and one at the parish church in Didcot, which has a six-metre circumference. Unfortunately, it was set aflame a few years ago but it seems to have recovered.”

The Chilterns are also the home of the famous beeches and there are also many old oaks. Checkendon, in its parkland, has some fine oak trees.

In Oxford itself there is another yew tree which David regards of particular importance. It stands in the churchyard of St Mary’s Church, Iffley, and David was much impressed by its size and obvious antiquity.

Beside the wall of the church here there is a horse chestnut which is also of interest. These trees live only 200 to 300 years but this has reached veteran status.

In Shotover Park David has visited a tree perhaps not normally associated with great age, a wild cherry.

He said: “It is quite impressive — quite a big, gnarled tree. It is unusual for one of that species to become so big or so old.”

This now is listed as an ancient tree, one of only nine ancient wild cherries recorded in the country. The park also has ancient oaks.

Wheatley Park School has in its grounds a tree of which it can be especially proud. An oak here is at present thought of as the largest in Oxfordshire, with a circumference of 9.27 metres, a size to which it has been growing for the best part of 1,000 years.

This tree is known as the Domesday Oak, for its association with William the Conqueror. It was one of two saplings given by the king to the then owners of Holton Park.

It is also sometimes referred to as the Broome or Breame Oak, after one of the owners of the park.

In the Vale of the White Horse there are both ancient and veteran ash trees recorded at Kingston Lisle, together with notable sycamores and oaks, and at Sparsholt several trees of interest.

In west Oxfordshire, at St Mary’s Church in Fulbrook, near Burford, there is another of the ancient yews.

Another tree with a life measured in centuries rather than longer is the sweet chestnut, although it is longer-lived than the horse chestnut. David knows of several impressive avenues that illustrate a long survival.

Non-native trees may not have been long enough in this country to become ancient, although they will have reached that stage in their country of origin There are relatively old examples of the mulberry tree in this country.

David added: “They were planted on big estates and associated with the silk industry as food for the silkworms.

“They are big trees, slow growing and many are still there.” A fine mulberry tree can be seen in the grounds of the Cotswold Wildlife Park, near Burford.

Also in the Cotswold Wildlife Park is a giant redwood, again non-native, which is thought to be one of the tallest in this country.

Another example of a non-native tree, which may be notable, is the monkey-puzzle tree.

Some interesting trees can be found growing in hedgerows, the field maple among them.

Some older maples are to be found — not surprisingly, since its name means ‘the maple tree enclosure’ — at Mapledurham.

The Woodland Trust has a team of about 100 volunteer verifiers working on its behalf across the country.

“It’s a fascinating task,” said David. “I particularly like seeing the yews, just to think how old they are.”

A species he might perhaps have liked to have been asked to visit would have been the elms, now so few and far between following the ravages of Dutch elm disease, for he recalls that it was a large elm tree in the garden of his family home that first inspired his interest in trees.

Since the relaunch of the Ancient Tree Hunt, the Woodland Trust has been receiving, as it usually does when an idea is brought back to the public notice, a new series of reports.

“There has certainly been a steady flow of these,” said David. “Every time there is publicity we receive a number of reports of new trees. And every time there is something new that we did not know about. It is very worthwhile.”

Oxfordshire so far has 35 ancient trees recorded and verified, and David is looking forward to visiting the newer nominations.

Anybody who would like to make a report of a tree, for which they can also include a photograph, can do so at www.ancient-tree-hunt.org.uk