Get hugging with the Ancient Tree Hunt this summer...
In a wave of nostalgia for the peace and love summers of the 1960s and with a watchful eye on the future for the UK’s remarkable ancient trees, this summer is going to be a ‘Summer of Hugs’, according to the Woodland Trust, the UK’s leading woodland conservation charity.
The Summer of Hugs officially kicks off at the Guardian Hay Literary Festival this week.
Clive Anderson, Monty Don, Felix Dennis and Will Cohu are among those celebrating ancient trees and woodland at the ten-day-long literary festival in the Brecon Beacons. The Summer of Hugs is part of the Woodland Trust’s Ancient Tree Hunt and there’ll be a range of events to celebrate it across the country.
The Ancient Tree Hunt’s five year plan is to find and record 100,000 ancient, veteran and notable trees in the UK and after its first year has gathered 17,000 records. This summer, the Trust hopes to get everyone hugging to add even more ancient trees to its records on www.AncientTreeHunt.org.uk
The Woodland Trust’s Ancient Tree Hunt database isn’t just a long, dull list of measurements and notes – it’s a free and searchable atlas. Every ancient tree found can be plotted on ‘zoom-able’ Ordnance Survey (OS) maps. Some trees have photographs, a blog, amazing stories of kings, queens, poets, politicians and painters, and even a list of visitors.
Hugging is an easy way to measure the girth of old trees, and a fat girth is one of several indicators of age. Ancient tree hunting doesn’t need special equipment and it’s something that everyone, of every age and level of fitness, can do this summer either when they’re out and about, or as a reason to go out for the day.
There are estimated to be more ancient trees in the UK than anywhere else in Northern Europe, yet there’s no official record of where they are, how many there are and, unlike most historic buildings, few have any protection.
Ancient trees and their younger cousins, the veterans and notable trees of the UK’s rural and urban landscape, are important because of the wildlife they sustain and their role in helping to shape our history over the centuries. Holes, dead and rotting wood, wrinkles and crannies are all important habitats for hundreds of plants, animals, insects and fungi, including many rare and threatened species. Clusters of ancient trees are even more important, because they offer more places for wildlife.
So how do you hug an ancient tree? A ‘British Standard Hug’ from an adult, with arms outstretched and fingertip-to-fingertip, is about 1.5 metres, and a child’s hug is roughly half that.
A veteran oak might be a candidate for the Ancient Tree Hunt database once it gets to a minimum of three adult hugs, a beech might qualify at just two hugs, and a fat, old sweet chestnut needs to be four hugs as they grow more quickly.
There are thought to be ancient oaks still thriving that were alive even before the arrival of William the Conqueror in 1066. Books and documents recording this momentous historic event haven’t survived as well as the oaks originating from the same date. Incredibly, these trees are still waiting to be found, hugged and mapped, and anyone could find one.
Thanks to 21st century technology, ancient tree clusters are indicated on the zoom-able maps on the Ancient Tree Hunt website. Armed with this knowledge, ancient tree hunters can visit specific sites in the expectation of having a grand old tree to hug and measure at the end of their trip. The Ancient Tree Hunt website even contains a layer of Sustrans information to help plan routes for cyclists, walkers and disabled people.
To register a tree on the Ancient Tree Hunt website, simply make a note of where it was found, take a photo if possible, and measure its girth. You can use a tape measure, or use the hug method – but first read the Ancient Tree Hunt’s guide to measuring old trees on the website www.AncientTreeHunt.org.uk
All submissions are checked by the Ancient Tree Hunt’s volunteer verifiers.
Ancient trees deserve treasuring, and the results of the Ancient Tree Hunt will help ensure they are properly cared for and their importance recognised for centuries to come. With its tree planting events and free ‘Hedge and Copse’ packs for schools and community groups, the Woodland Trust also plants thousands of new trees every year, which it hopes will become the successors to today’s ancients – the ancients of the future.
This summer marks a renewed effort in the hunt for old trees. Designating 2008 as ‘The Summer of Hugs’ introduces the Ancient Tree Hunt as a project for everyone, of any age, in towns, cities and countryside. And who doesn’t need a hug every now and then?
For more hugging information, or to join in the Ancient Tree Hunt by recording a tree, log onto www.AncientTreeHunt.org.uk, or call 0845 293 5581. To find out about Summer of Hugs Events, see www.AncientTreeHunt.org.uk/news/events
Photographs are available and reproduction is free for editorial use. Click on the thumbnails on the right-hand side of this page to download large versions.
Notes to editors
For media enquiries contact:
The Woodland Trust Press Office on 01476 581121, email: media@woodlandtrust.org.uk
The Woodland Trust:
The Woodland Trust is the UK’s leading woodland conservation charity. It has 300,000 members and supporters.
The Trust has three key aims: i) to enable the creation of more native woods and places rich in trees ii) to protect native woods, trees and their wildlife for the future iii) to inspire everyone to enjoy and value woods and trees
Established in 1972, the Woodland Trust now has over 1,000 sites in its care covering approximately 20,000 hectares (50,000 acres). Access to its sites is free.
Woodland Trust supports the Hack Shack
The Norway spruce timber poles supporting the media centre next to the Barclays Wealth Marquee at the 2008 Hay Literary Festival came from the Trust’s Credenhill Park Wood, seen on Channel 4’s Time Team Special ‘Swords, Skulls and Strongholds’. They were removed as part of the gradual restoration process of this Planted Ancient Woodland site from conifer plantation to native broadleaved woodland. Credenhill Park Wood forms an important piece in the jigsaw that is the Herefordshire landscape, packed with ancient woodlands and semi-natural habitats.
‘Ancient’ is the term used to describe trees in the ancient or third and final stages of their lives, trees that are old relative to others of the same species. The Ancient Tree Hunt is run by the Woodland Trust. For more information about the Ancient Tree Hunt, or to:
- Find an ancient tree near you
- Record an ancient tree or add stories and photos to the ancient tree blogs
- Find a Summer of Hugs event
log onto www.AncientTreeHunt.org.uk
Generally speaking, the older and fatter a tree is, the more important it is for wildlife. Where a number of ancient trees are gathered together and the more there are, the more valuable they are for biodiversity. Some trees may even be as valuable in death as in life. Their decaying heartwood can persist for many years before it is gradually recycled into the ground. The old deadwood and hollow centres of ancient trees are extremely important habitats for rare species of fungi and insects.
The Ancient Tree Hunt
This is a five-year project, led by the Woodland Trust in partnership with the Ancient Tree Forum and the Tree Register of the British Isles. It is funded by the Heritage Lottery Fund, the Esmee Fairbairn Foundation, the Countryside Council for Wales, the Welsh Council for Voluntary Action, Scottish Natural Heritage and supported by the Forestry Commission Scotland; and will be working with local partners across the UK. Joining the Hunt are the Tree Council, The Caravan Club, The National Trust, English Heritage, Forestry Commission and HM Prison Service, over 100 regional and local groups, and many landowners. www.AncientTreeHunt.org.uk
Sustrans
Sustrans cycle routes are included as a map layer in the Ancient Tree Hunt interactive maps. Zoom in to the city level and tick the ‘Sustrans’ box in the Layers palette to show routes.Ancient Tree Hunt interactive map
Sustrans is a sustainable transport charity. www.sustrans.org.uk
Partners and Supporters of the Ancient Tree Hunt
The Ancient Tree Forum aims to secure the long-term future of ancient trees by calling for no further loss of ancient trees, good management of ancient trees, and the development of a succession of future ancient trees. In addition the Forum and its members seek to raise awareness and understanding of the value and importance of ancient trees. www.woodlandtrust.org.uk/ancient-tree-forum/
The Tree Register of the British Isles is a registered charity collating and updating a database of notable trees throughout Britain and Ireland. It provides information on the size and growth of trees which is not available from any other source. It includes historical records taken from reference works going back more than 200 years. The Tree Register organises a volunteer network of over 50 tree measurers who update historical records and discover over 2,000 new trees worthy of inclusion each year. Their patron is HRH Prince of Wales.
Heritage Lottery Fund (HLF) enables communities to celebrate, look after and learn more about the nation’s diverse heritage. From great museums and historic buildings to local parks and beauty spots, or recording and celebrating traditions, customs and history, HLF grants open up the nation’s heritage for everyone to enjoy. It has supported more than 16,500 projects, allocating over £3.3 billion across the UK. For more information contact Vicky Wilford tel 0207 591 6046, email vickyw@hlf.org.uk. Website www.hlf.org.uk
Esmée Fairbairn Foundation is one of the largest independent grant making foundations in the UK. It makes grants in four programme areas: Arts & Heritage, Education, Environment and Social Change: Enterprise and Independence. The Foundation also takes initiatives itself where it believes important opportunities remain unexplored. In 2007 it expects to make grants of £29 million across the UK. For further information please visit www.esmeefairbairn.org.uk