By: Blonde Two
There can’t be many of us who don’t love trees. I feel that, during my recent visit to the New Forest, I rekindled my love of all things arboreal; I also feel that, if I am going to be relying on trees to hold my hammock up for some of this year’s 50 sleeps, I should take a bit more of an interest in them. Whilst Mr B2 and I were in the New Forest we took the opportunity to visit the Knightwood Oak. The Knightwood Oak certainly deserved a visit, she (I think she) is over 500 years old, is one of the oldest trees in the New Forest and has a girth of 7.4 metres (even I looked skinny next to her). What interested me the most however about the Knightwood Oak was that we found it because it was marked on Ordnance Survey’s New Forest Explorer (1:25,000) map.
OS Maps Copyright Ordnance Survey 2018
I couldn’t remember ever before seeing a specific tree on an Ordnance Survey map, which started me off on a kind of tree mapping treasure hunt. There are some important trees out there:
There is the ‘Lonely Tree’ by Llyn Padarn in Llanberis, much photographed for its stunning ‘down the lake, towards the mountains’ views but first introduced to me by fellow OS Champion Jason Rawles. (Not on an OS map).
OS Maps Copyright Ordnance Survey 2018
There is the ‘Dartmoor Christmas Tree’, which, of course has been commended into literature in our children’s book. (Not on an OS map and neither would we want it to be).
OS Maps Copyright Ordnance Survey 2018
There is the ‘Major Oak’, star of Sherwood Forest and 2014 ‘Tree of the Year’. Well known for its possible (but probably not actual) associations with Robin Hood and bigger and older than the Knightwood Oak with an impressive 10m girth and 800-1000 years.
OS Maps Copyright Ordnance Survey 2018
There is the first Bramley Apple tree, currently suffering from Honey Fungus but hoping for a cure from scientists at Nottingham Trent University. (Not on an OS map, probably because it is in someone’s garden).
OS Maps Copyright Ordnance Survey 2018
Maybe most deserving of a place on a map (and sadly without one) must be the Ashbrittle Yew, which, at around 4000 years old, is about the same age as Stonehenge and much older than the church in whose yard it is rooted.
OS Maps Copyright Ordnance Survey 2018
My sister once planted an acorn in a dustbin. It is a fair-sized oak now and it would be fabulous to think that, one day, it might find itself onto a map, or at least onto a list of ‘important trees’. If you look carefully at the two trees above that have been honoured with a place on the map, they both have blue stars next to them. These stars usually denote rather staid sounding ‘other tourist feature(s)’ but I have a feeling that, in this case, they have been added to show the ‘star’ status of these magnificent trees.
Should you be interested to find out the meaning of other Ordnance Survey map symbols, this 1:25,000 legend might be of interest (beware the giant blue duck!)
Look no further than our own town.
At least you should be pleased that you are not as heavy as these lovely old oaks – the Major Oak is thought to weigh in at 23 tons!
Rather proud of a very old holly tree up on the hill, that is now registered on the Ancient Tree website – it’s not my tree, but it was the first one I ever found that no-one else had registered. I visit it quite often.
The yew tree at Fortingall is on the map, deservedly.
I think the most famous ‘random’ tree, though, must be the Mosedale Holly Tree (I can’t figure out a grid reference from an online map, but find Crummock Water and look on the other side of Melbreak). Not historical, just lonely!
How fabulous another mapped tree to go and find! I must get up that way this year and look for it! Thank you 🙂