European Tree of the Year

[Cudzoziemiec]

Forget Euro 2016! Forget Eurovision! Forget even the European Bicycle Polo Cup! This is like all of those rolled into one, but more so.

Because it's a sporting competition (oh!) there is, of course, no UK or GB entry. Instead there are separate entries from England, Wales, Scotland and Ireland. But just like Eurovision - or SPOTY - it's decided by popular vote. (So it's a referendum on European Trees! What do UKIP have to say on tree movement?)

You might think it's a bit nutty. You might say it's in need of root and branch reform. Or maybe you just want to see your favourite tree take the crown. It goes against the grain to say this, but the French tree looks good. Unfortunately, there is no Norwegian wood to
get nul points - they must be turning over a new leaf.

http://www.treeoftheyear.org/uvod.aspx

[Fab Foodie]

Forget Euro 2016! Forget Eurovision! Forget even the European Bicycle Polo Cup! This is like all of those rolled into one, but more so.

Because it's a sporting competition (oh!) there is, of course, no UK or GB entry. Instead there are separate entries from England, Wales, Scotland and Ireland. But just like Eurovision - or SPOTY - it's decided by popular Poplar vote. (So it's a referendum on European Trees! What do UKIP have to say on tree movement?)

You might think it's a bit nutty. You might say it's in need of root and branch reform. Or maybe you just want to see your favourite tree take the crown. It goes against the grain to say this, but the French tree looks good. Unfortunately, there is no Norwegian wood to
get nul points - they must be turning over a new leaf.

http://www.treeoftheyear.org/uvod.aspx

Sorry, it was too good to miss .... I hoped Yew woodn't mind ....

[Pingu]

...What do UKIP have to say on tree movement?...

I think they're against a xylem.

[Wowbagger]

It's an excellent idea.

About 10 years ago we had a holiday in Italy, at Domaso,  on the shores of Lake Como. We had a number of excellent walks and on one of them we met this chap:-

http://www.lagodicomoelugano.com/en/nature-and-parks/rogolone/

These trees are Natural Monuments and are looked after properly. Our British "preservation orders", in which the maximum penalty for damaging or felling a tree under such an order is a puny £20,000 fine, are pathetic and ineffective. Firstly, hardly anyone ever gets fined and secondly, where such orders are contravened to facilitate building work, any fine can just be absorbed in the price of the house.

There used to be a magnificent beech tree in Priory Park, Southend. It must have been nearly 100' tall and could be seen for miles around. One December morning I took the dog to the park to see vandals with chain saws all over the tree, felling it. The concern was that the tree, if it fell, might damage the Priory. It might have done, but since the Priory was extensively renovated in 1923 and almost certainly bore little resemblance to the Priory demolished during the Reformation, that would scarcely have mattered. The tree was much more valuable than the building, it just did not bear such a high price.

[Fab Foodie]

...What do UKIP have to say on tree movement?...

I think they're against a xylem.

Oh very good!   I thought on this one the Kippers would just go with the phloem ....

[Cudzoziemiec]

It's a marvellous idea in theory but I wonder just how effective it is in practice? Firstly, it picks one tree from each country, which inevitably means it concentrates on the grand, obviously impressive trees, ignoring the less visually splendid but equally valuable specimens. Secondly, how far does its influence spread? I hadn't heard of it till yesterday, by which time the voting had finished - results due to be announced tomorrow - and the selection process must have been long over.

Still, it is a good thing, and I especially like that the Welsh tree has been blown over but not written off for that.

[Wowbagger]

There are quite a few sweet chestnuts that I can think of that were blown over in 1987 and which are still alive, new "trunks" having grown out of the old one.

[red marley]

Has anyone suggested No.1 The Larch yet?

[Deano]

I'd nominate either of the giant sequoias in South Park, Darlington

http://www.redwoodworld.co.uk/picturepages/darlington.htm

[Wowbagger]

That's an interesting website, Deano. I note that two redwoods are recorded in Ramsden Heath, where my family lived from 1958 - my brother still does.

There is a plantation there which used to have a fair number of redwoods as well as a bamboo patch and some outstanding rhododendron bushes. The redwoods used to tower above the rest of the wood and could be seen from miles away. Sadly, I think they have all died in recent years and there's no sign of them. They must have been planted at the same time as the extant example at Ramsden Hall School - all of this belonged to the local "squire" in the 19th century. Apparently, when he died and his estate was bing divided, botanists from Kew came along at helped themselves to some of the finer rhododendron plants, a few of which are about 40' tall - or were, the last time I trespassed in the wood. It was said that they flowered every month of the year except January and whenever I went there they seemed to be in flower. I would imagine that with climate change they are permanently in flower.

The wood is used as a paintball venue now.

[Mr Larrington]

John Sergeant has just been on the anbaric distascope gleefully eliminating rhododendrons by the time-honoured slash and burn method.  Nasty FOREIGN things coming over here poisoning our soil and strangling our trees...

[Cudzoziemiec]

The footballing oak of Estonia won, closely followed by the Great Plane of Tata.
http://www.treeoftheyear.org/uvod.aspx