An appeal to help protect the UK’s oldest living treasures
They were alive during the historic reign of Alfred the Great. They were watching when King John took counsel, and saw Edward 1 hold an early version of our modern-day parliament in the 13th century. The legendary Robin Hood and followers are said to have used one to escape the Sheriff of Nottingham and they can grow so large and hollow that 20 people dined within one without difficulty!
What are they?
They are ancient trees and astonishingly, many of these incredible natural relics still survive today. Throughout the centuries these old, gnarled survivors have helped shape our natural and cultural landscapes and provide vital homes for a rich range of wildlife. A single ancient tree can support hundreds of species, including many rare and threatened varieties. With such a key role, it seems strange that these extraordinary living landmarks are today often neglected and overlooked, or even worse, mismanaged and felled.
The Ancient Tree Hunt - Mapping a future for ancient trees
It is believed that the UK contains more ancient trees than anywhere else in Northern Europe. This exceptional living legacy is partly thanks to William the Conqueror who established vast and exclusive Royal Hunting Forests after 1066. Today however, the majority of these ancient treasures stand forgotten and vulnerable across the country. Whilst we list and manage buildings that are just 30 years old, ancient trees – which may be over 500 years old – are granted minimal legal protection with little advice given to custodians.
This shocking failing in our heritage protection laws means that today we do not know where the majority of our ancient trees are located or even how many there are! Without such information campaigning for their protection is almost impossible. Working in partnership with the Ancient Tree Forum and the Tree Register of the British Isles, the Woodland Trust has therefore launched the Ancient Tree Hunt, an exciting project to find and map all the fat, old trees in the UK.
Recording our ancient trees is the first crucial step towards securing their future. We believe there are approximately 500,000 waiting to be found across the country but we need your help. You can take part in the Ancient Tree Hunt by finding and measuring an ancient tree, then recording it on our interactive online map. By involving thousands of people in the project we can help ensure that these trees and the stories that surround them are chronicled and conserved for future generations.
A vital resource
The creation of a comprehensive database is crucial for helping landowners, organisations, government, the public and those who act as custodians to understand more about the priceless value of ancient trees. Some of the biggest threats are misunderstanding and mismanagement and even a Tree Preservation Order may offer little protection. It is also important to ensure a succession of future ancient trees, properly identified and protected.
Help put our living history on the map
Thanks to the generosity of our supporters we are nearly half way towards completing the £400,000 funding gap on this ambitious £1.4 million Ancient Tree Hunt. However we still have a target of over £200,000 left to find.
Your donation could help us train and support volunteer verifiers to identify ancient trees, enable us to develop and maintain technology that will allow 40,000 people to record their trees quickly and easily, and help us to publicise just how important these natural monuments are to the environment, wildlife and our culture.
For a £5,000 donation you can lead the way by becoming one of our Ancient Tree Guardians. You will have the chance to visit private collections of the UK’s best ancient trees at exclusive Guardian events, receive a sapling grown from an ancient oak in a Royal Forest and a twice-yearly newsletter.
Please send a donation today and help us give these ancient relics the protection they deserve