Pontfadog Oak
The fallen tree
SpeciesSessile oak (Quercus petraea)
LocationPontfadog, Wrexham County Borough, Wales
Date seededBetween 368 and 815 AD
Date felled18 April 2013 (2013-04-18)

The Pontfadog Oak was a sessile oak tree (Quercus petraea) that stood on Cilcochwyn farm above the village of Pontfadog, in the Ceiriog Valley west of Chirk in the county borough of Wrexham, Wales, until it was blown over in the early hours of 18 April 2013.[1][2] At the time it was reputed to be the oldest and largest oak tree in the United Kingdom.[3]

Known as "Wales's national tree",[1] its girth was over 16 metres (53 ft) in 1881.[1]

In 1996 using Forestry Commission techniques, its age was estimated as between 1,181 and 1,628 years.[1]

Recognition

The oak was one of 50 Great British Trees selected by The Tree Council in 2002 to spotlight trees in Great Britain in honour of the Queen's Golden Jubilee,[4] "in recognition of its place in the national heritage".[note 1] It was one of just 74 trees described in the 2012 book Heritage Trees Wales,[5] published in association with The Tree Council and with support from the Countryside Council for Wales and Forestry Commission Wales.[6]

Clones

In 2013, The Crown Estate propagated a sapling from the original tree and planted it in Windsor Great Park.[7]

A further five saplings have been cloned from the Pontfadog Oak, three of which will be planted at the National Botanic Garden of Wales, with the other two going to sites near Pontfadog; one at Chirk Castle and the other at Erddig, as part of a woodland memorial to those who died during the COVID-19 pandemic.[8]

See also

Notes

  1. ↑ Wording on plaque

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 Vidal, John (28 April 2013). "The Pontfadog oak was the oldest of the old, revered, loved … and now mourned". The Observer. Retrieved 1 May 2013.
  2. ↑ Anon (19 April 2013). "Pontfadog Oak: 1,200-year-old tree toppled by winds". BBC Online. Retrieved 1 May 2013.
  3. ↑ Anon (4 June 2002). "Oak trees' royal roots honoured". BBC Online. Retrieved 1 May 2013.
  4. ↑ "Fifty Great Trees for Fifty Great Years". The Tree Council. May 2002. Archived from the original on 6 January 2003. Retrieved 1 May 2013.
  5. ↑ Miles, Archie (30 April 2012). Heritage Trees Wales. Graffeg. ISBN 1905582498.
  6. ↑ "Heritage Trees Wales". The Tree Council. Archived from the original on 4 April 2013. Retrieved 1 May 2013.
  7. ↑ "One of the world's largest and oldest oak trees returns to Chirk Castle". National Trust. Retrieved 29 April 2023.
  8. ↑ Morris, Steven. "North Wales' ancient felled Pontfadog oak returns in five cloned saplings". The Guardian. The Guardian. Retrieved 29 April 2023.

52°56′18″N 3°8′32″W / 52.93833°N 3.14222°W / 52.93833; -3.14222

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