ROBIN HARPER JOINS IN HUNT FOR SCOTLAND’S OLDEST TREASURE
Help us look for friends for the Dalkeith Park Oaks
Ancient treasure is waiting to be found across Edinburgh, much of it even older than many of our oldest buildings such as St Margaret’s Chapel1. What is it? Ancient trees, which can live to be up to 5000 years old – some of the oldest living things on the planet. Scotland is home to many of these treasures, but amazingly we don’t know where they are! Robin Harper MSP, is joining The Woodland Trust Scotland to help find Edinburgh’s ancient treasures. Robin joins Clive Anderson and Bill Bryson on the hunt. Nell McAndrew and Rupert Bear are leading the hunt for younger children.
Anyone from kids to adults can take part, by finding living history in their parks and gardens and helping the Woodland Trust create the first interactive map of our ancient trees. This is an important step towards safeguarding these very British treasures. It’s simple to do, just find your tree and hug it! The fatter it is, the older it is.
Ancient trees are home to thousands of species of plants and animals, including many rare and threatened species that aren’t found anywhere else. As they get older, the trees develop holes, nooks and crannies and dead and rotting wood, perfect homes for lots of insects. Groups of ancient trees growing together are the most important of all as the variety of nooks and crannies they provide creates an amazing community of wildlife.
Edinburgh is home to Dalkeith Park Oaks, this group of veteran oak trees growing in the grounds of Dalkeith Country Park date back to the 14th century. They display huge multi-stemmed trunks, the largest reaching almost 10 metres in girth. The Trust is asking, if you have a story to tell about these tree or know of other trees then record them online at www.ancientreehunt.org.uk
This five-year project is led by the Woodland Trust in partnership with the Ancient Tree Forum and the Tree Register of the British Isles, funded by the Heritage Lottery Fund, Scottish Natural Heritage and the Esmee Fairbairn Foundation. The Forestry Commission Scotland also supports the hunt.
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Notes to editors
1. St Margaret’s Chapel is the oldest building still standing in Edinburgh Castle grounds. It was built during the 12th Century by King David I, as a private chapel for the Royal family and dedicated it to his mother Margaret who died in the castle in 1093
For media enquiries contact: Jacqui Morris on 01355 578777, mobile 07979 706675 or The Woodland Trust Press Office on 01476 581121, e-mail media@woodland-trust.org.uk
The Woodland Trust: The Woodland Trust is the UK’s leading woodland conservation charity. It has 300,000 members and supporters. The Trust has four key aims: i) No further loss of ancient woodland; ii) Restoring and improving the biodiversity of woods; iii) Increasing new native woodland; iv) Increasing people’s understanding and enjoyment of woodland.
Established in 1972, the Woodland Trust now has over 1,000 sites in its care covering approximately 20,000 hectares (50,000 acres).
In 1984, the Trust acquired its first wood in Scotland. Today the Trust owns 80 sites across Scotland covering 8,100 hectares. Further news can be accessed via www.woodland-trust.org.uk
Ancient Tree Hunt: This five-year project is led by the Woodland Trust in partnership with the Ancient Tree Forum and the Tree Register of the British Isles. The project is funded by the Heritage Lottery Fund, the Esmee Fairbairn Foundation, the Countryside Council for Wales, the Welsh Council for Voluntary Action and Scottish Natural Heritage, and supported by Forestry Commission Scotland and will be working with local partners across the UK.
Also Joining the Hunt are the Tree Council, The Caravan Club, The National Trust, English Heritage, Forestry Commission and HM Prison Service, over 100 regional and local groups, and many landowners.
RUPERT BEAR
Rupert Bear is leading the hunt for old, fat trees with pre-school nurseries and their families. Identifying how many children’s ‘bear hugs’ it takes to encircle a tree trunk will indicate its age, the fatter the tree, the older it is. A keen conservationist, Rupert and friends have many magical adventures in their treehouse set within the oldest, fattest tree in Nutwood. Watch out for Rupert Bear on Five’s Milkshake everyday. Follow the magic to www.rupertbear.com to log your ‘Rupert bear hug’ and register for a pre-school nursery pack bursting full of Rupert nature trails and activities. Children are able to create their own adventures from Nutwood with a collection of toys available in toy shops from September.
PARTNERS AND SUPPORTERS
ANCIENT TREE FORUM
The Ancient Tree Forum aims to secure the long-term future of ancient trees by calling for no further loss of ancient trees, good management of ancient trees, the development of a succession of future ancient trees. In addition the Forum and its members seek to raise awareness and understanding of the value and importance of ancient trees.
ESMEE FAIRBAIRN FOUNDATION
Esmée Fairbairn Foundation is one of the largest independent grant making foundations in the UK. It makes grants in four programme areas: Arts & Heritage, Education, Environment and Social Change: Enterprise and Independence. The Foundation also takes initiatives itself where it believes important opportunities remain unexplored. In 2007 it expects to make grants of £29 million across the UK. For further information please visit www.esmeefairbairn.org.uk.
HERITAGE LOTTERY FUND
The Heritage Lottery Fund (HLF) enables communities to celebrate, look after and learn more about our diverse heritage. They fund the entire spread of heritage - including buildings, museums, natural heritage and the heritage of cultural traditions and language.
Since 1994 the HLF has awarded over £3.6 billion to more than 22,500 projects across England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland, helping open up our heritage for everyone to enjoy.
THE TREE REGISTER OF THE BRITISH ISLES
The Tree Register is a registered charity collating and updating a database of notable trees throughout Britain and Ireland. It provides information on the size and growth of trees which is not available from any other source. It includes historical records taken from reference works going back more than 200 years. The Tree Register organises a volunteer network of over 50 tree measurers who update historical records and discover over 2,000 new trees worthy of inclusion each year. Their patron is HRH Prince of Wales. Learn more at www.treeregister.org.
