Vote now for Bristol’s best tree

Portwall Coppiced London Plane, submitted by Vassili Papastavrou. “The tree is in the new development site around Temple Meads. It is bordered on one side by Portwall Lane East and on the other by Temple Gate which turns into Redcliffe Mead Lane. This lovely plane was felled in 2011 but has since recovered as a coppice and is doing well. Who knows why it was felled? Look at it now! The only coppiced plane in Bristol. It’s fighting back and bigger than most new trees of the same age. Its CAVAT value is £70K (before it was chopped down). What is the CAVAT value of a coppiced plane?”

Bishops Knoll Sessile Oak, submitted by The Woodland Trust. “This remarkable oak tree is one of the biggest in Bristol, yet it is the least well known. The jaw-dropping Sessile oak mirrors every child-like image of an ancient oak tree, but its history is as mysterious as the gigantic branches and hollows that tower over its huge main trunk. It now sits in Bishops Knoll – a small Woodland Trust wood in a quiet corner of Stoke Park. But the wood was once a former medieval deer park gifted by Henry VIII, and later became the grounds and gardens of a large 19th Century estate house called The Knoll, which also used as a hospital for First World War soldiers returning from the trenches. Its age is a mystery as estimates vary from 300 to 900 years old, and its strong multi-stemmed thick branches still grow tremendously, whereas most other ancient oaks of its size have long lost their limbs. Is it a veteran pollard on the most fertile soil? Or an old bundle planting of a handful of oak saplings now grown intertwined? Or just an ancient herculean colossus?

Stoke Park Horse Chestnut, submitted by Friends of Stoke Park. “This tree is one of the oldest trees in Hermitage Woods. Whenever we hold an event as Friends of Stoke Park and pass by the tree the children on the event are instantly attracted to climb the tree. The tree welcomes you in to Hermitage Wood which is a beautiful piece of woodland filled with swathes of wild garlic and bluebells in the spring – it’s one of the few inner city woodlands where you can visit such ancient woodland. We held a walk to choose our favourite 3 trees in the park and this tree made the shortlist. We then ran a poll on Facebook for Friends of Stoke Park and park users to chose their favourite tree. One park user compared the tree to the ‘womping willow’ in Harry Potter, it has a magical feel. Planted early 19th century it has the bleeding canker disease an air bourne bacterial infection that eats away at the new wood and it has also fallen victim to the non native chestnut leaf miner moth.”

Eagle House Holm Oak, submitted by Jim Smith. “This is one of the few remaining large trees from the old Filwood area, pre-development. If it was removed, it would be a great loss to the community, apart from its environmental usefulness! It has a hollow cavity, at the back, out of sight. It has extensive charring of the heartwood, due to fire, or fires, that have been ignited by ‘persons unknown’, inside the cavity!”

The Cotham Walrus Tree, submitted by Walrustrinianism (The Walrus Tree Religion). “The Walrus tree is located in the boundary wall of 31 Cotham Road. A place of worship for ‘Walrustrinians’, a small group of children (and one adult) from a local school. It is a place of calm for all who visit no matter what their religion. It is also unique because it looks like a walrus. The group have created a religion around the unique tree on their daily walk to and from school. The religion basically being a pact to be good to themselves and others, they stop twice a day to spend a moment at the tree every school day. It may not be the oldest tree, the wildest, or the largest tree in Bristol; but it is one that has captured the imagination of a group of otherwise urban, electronically plugged in children, and given them a way to commune with nature twice a day. It is the centre of stories, jokes and moments of philosophical contemplation. What more can a tree do, other than that – and look like a walrus.”

St Andrew’s Park Lombardy Poplar, submitted by Norwegians in Bristol. “This tree is a gem for children. A brilliant example of a dead tree, yet with lots of meaning to wildlife and community, and maybe especially to children in the park. This shows how leaving a dead and fallen tree in the right place can create and stimulate exploration and play often with other children and also new friendships. It is mystical, a challenge to climb for the little ones, but at the same time encourages the natural ability for movements in children in relation to nature. Tactile learning is high in this environment which inspires children to touch, explore and investigate a natural phenomenon in a park setting where more ‘constructed’ playgrounds are mainstream. This year our group, Norwegians in Bristol, celebrated the Norwegian Constitution Day with a picnic in the park on May 17. Some live in the area others don’t, and the children of course had to climb, explore and be kings and queens of the castle of this magnificent ‘dead’ tree! We are so grateful that these opportunities with dead trees are around and would like to nominate this particular dead tree to Bristol Tree of the Year 2018.”

The Seven Sisters, submitted by The Bristol Naturalists’ Society. “Our choice is not one tree but a formation of trees. The Seven Sisters were planted in 1871, nine years after the foundation of the Bristol Naturalists’ Society in 1862 and ten years after The Downs Act (1861). The trees very quickly became an iconic landmark in the life of Bristolians and the name remained unchanged even after one tree was lost in 1890. For some reason, the Seven Sisters caught the imagination of local citizens and if they were speaking in the language of today, the landmark would be designated as ‘cool’. It still is, even though only three trees remain… We have chosen the Seven Sisters because the formation is a long-standing, well-loved, iconic Bristol landmark. The lives of Bristolians of all shapes, sizes, ages and classes have played out under, around and above the branches of this iconic formation of Black Pines on a site of major importance to the City and County of Bristol, viz, the Bristol Downs.”

Brislington Brook Plane, submitted by Friends of Brislington Brook. “The giant London plane tree that dominates an area of Brislington’s Nightingale Valley is, together with the nearby packhorse bridge, one of the features that help define this unexpected green haven. Its trunk was once an open hollow, tempting the mischievous to light fires within it so a few years ago a local action group walled it up. This has given rise to a legend that a witch is entombed within. Many generations of Brislingtonians have picnicked in its shade, swung across the brook from ropes attached to its boughs or caught tiddlers beneath it. It has a symbolic significance: It’s tall, it’s strong, it’s seen adversity, it endures.”

Stoke Lodge Lucombe Oak, submitted by We Love Stoke Lodge. “The Lucombe Oak is a cross between a Turkey Oak and a Cork Oak. It was first raised by an Exeter nurseryman, William Lucombe, in 1762. It is unusual in the fact that it keeps its leaves over winter. The story goes that William Lucombe was so attached to his special oak that he felled the original specimen to provide wood for his own coffin and kept the boards under his bed until he died. However, he lived an exceptionally long life, dying at the age of 102 years, by which time the planks had decayed in the Devon damp. To quote an article from Royal Botanical Gardens, Kew, this showed ‘that Lucombe knew more about growing trees than preserving them’. On his death timber from one of his early propagations was used to make his coffin instead. Notwithstanding the tree’s fascinating history, so many of our community hold treasured memories of this tree dating back over four generations. At a recent community picnic those in their nineties sat alongside primary school children of today talking about the best picnics they have had under our beloved tree and sharing tips on how to climb it wonderful branches. This tree is the meeting point for many sports and well-being groups. Its branches shade baby groups, yoga classes, families and friends from the sun (and the rain) every day – as it has done for hundreds of years ! This tree is a not just located in the centre of our community, it is part of it.”

Pen Park Wellingtonia, submitted by Eluka. “This tree is outside my home and is one of the biggest trees this area. It looks beautiful, strong and old. The tree is so tall it towers above the houses. History unknown.”

Downs Hawthorn, submitted by The Friends of the Downs. “Situated on the Downs close to Bakers Path and Ladies Mile, this magnificent tree is one of the last of the veteran hawthorns for which the Downs was famous in 1900. People came from miles around to see and smell the thorns when they were in bloom. Most of these fine trees have become the centres of the clumps of small trees and scrub that are now a distinctive feature of the Downs. They have become infested with Ivy, Clematis, Dog Rose and Bramble and most have died. A girth of 250 cm for a normal tree would not indicate old age, but Hawthorns grow far more slowly than normal trees, and a growth rate of 1 cm a year when young will slow with age, so that a girth of 250 cm suggests an age of at least 250 years. This thorn is distinctive in having a single bole, which rapidly splits into six major trunks. Many of the other veterans thorns have become multi-trunked with age which makes accurate age assessment impossible. In bloom this tree remains magnificent.”