More than £100 000 has been awarded by The National Lottery Heritage Fund to help safeguard the future of one of the UK's oldest and most important heritage trees - The Great London Plane of Ely!
Believed to be the first ever National Lottery grant allocated to an individual historic tree, the £121 000 will allow innovative bracing and pruning work to be carried out on the tree by Italian and UK experts, using ground-breaking techniques for the first time in this country.
The Great London Plane of Ely is situated in the gardens of the Old Palace, which is home to our Sixth Form Centre.
David Day, Chair of Governors at King's, is leading the campaign to support the tree.
The Great London Plane of Ely was recognised as one of the Top 50 Great British Trees by The Tree Council in 2002 – the only plane tree on the list. It is commemorated with a plaque on site.
The Tree Council CEO, Sara Lom, said:
With funding now in hand, a team of UK and Italian arboricultural experts guided by Dr Stefania Gasperini, former President of the European Arboricultural Council, will employ an approach called morphophysiology to conserve the tree. This technique takes account of how the tree has developed throughout its life, managing it as naturally as possible to support its future long-term growth. While employed extensively in Europe, this project will be the first time this approach has been used to conserve a heritage tree in the UK.
While the Great London Plane of Ely continues to enjoy vigorous good health and displays plenty of new season extension growth, old cable bracing installed in the 1940s and 1980s now needs to be replaced. The new bracing will be installed within the tree canopy, and over a 4-year period, precision pruning will encourage growth in the areas where the tree needs additional strength, sustaining its vitality long into the future.
The team behind the Ely conservation efforts, including Will Temple, Grounds and Gardens Manager at King's, are working with The Tree Council, The Woodland Trust, Arboricultural Association, and the University of Cambridge's Department of Engineering.
The conservation work is set to start in July, and real-time data monitoring will be gathered in order to assess the new bracing and pruning regime across the seasons, with the information collected made available to help inform conservation efforts for other heritage trees.
The Great London Plane of Ely (Platanus x hispanica) is a hybrid of the Oriental plane and American sycamore, and is believed to be one of the UK’s original London Planes. It is also the largest London Plane in the UK at around 42m high.
Plans are in place to ensure community engagement and public access to the tree through organised garden open days, artist events, tours, and participation in Heritage Open Days.
A camera will also be installed to allow the public to access live footage of the tree at any time, through The Tree Council website.
Image: Alan Parkinson, shared on Flickr under CC license
I am lucky to be able to walk through the Old Palace gardens whenever I want, and standing in the garden is a huge London plane tree.
Via the King's Ely social media feed.
Believed to be the first ever National Lottery grant allocated to an individual historic tree, the £121 000 will allow innovative bracing and pruning work to be carried out on the tree by Italian and UK experts, using ground-breaking techniques for the first time in this country.
The Great London Plane of Ely is situated in the gardens of the Old Palace, which is home to our Sixth Form Centre.
The tree was planted in around 1674, and is believed to have been a gift from King Charles II to the Bishop of Ely.
David Day, Chair of Governors at King's, is leading the campaign to support the tree.
He said:
“We are thrilled that The National Lottery Heritage Fund has awarded a grant to fund the conservation of this heritage tree of national importance. The money will help to ensure that this magnificent tree can be enjoyed by future - as well as current - generations. It stands as a fine example of how our natural heritage can be conserved and nurtured. The funding allows innovative techniques to be implemented for the first time in the UK, providing a blueprint for the conservation of many other important trees. This grant would not be possible without the National Lottery players, and we thank them for their generous support.”
The Great London Plane of Ely was recognised as one of the Top 50 Great British Trees by The Tree Council in 2002 – the only plane tree on the list. It is commemorated with a plaque on site.
The Tree Council CEO, Sara Lom, said:
“As identified in 2002, the selected heritage trees were of exceptional beauty, rarity or national interest, some as old as medieval cathedrals and a few older than Stonehenge. All our great British Heritage Trees are equally worthy of protection as are our stately homes and castles.”
With funding now in hand, a team of UK and Italian arboricultural experts guided by Dr Stefania Gasperini, former President of the European Arboricultural Council, will employ an approach called morphophysiology to conserve the tree. This technique takes account of how the tree has developed throughout its life, managing it as naturally as possible to support its future long-term growth. While employed extensively in Europe, this project will be the first time this approach has been used to conserve a heritage tree in the UK.
While the Great London Plane of Ely continues to enjoy vigorous good health and displays plenty of new season extension growth, old cable bracing installed in the 1940s and 1980s now needs to be replaced. The new bracing will be installed within the tree canopy, and over a 4-year period, precision pruning will encourage growth in the areas where the tree needs additional strength, sustaining its vitality long into the future.
The team behind the Ely conservation efforts, including Will Temple, Grounds and Gardens Manager at King's, are working with The Tree Council, The Woodland Trust, Arboricultural Association, and the University of Cambridge's Department of Engineering.
The conservation work is set to start in July, and real-time data monitoring will be gathered in order to assess the new bracing and pruning regime across the seasons, with the information collected made available to help inform conservation efforts for other heritage trees.
The Great London Plane of Ely (Platanus x hispanica) is a hybrid of the Oriental plane and American sycamore, and is believed to be one of the UK’s original London Planes. It is also the largest London Plane in the UK at around 42m high.
Plans are in place to ensure community engagement and public access to the tree through organised garden open days, artist events, tours, and participation in Heritage Open Days.
A camera will also be installed to allow the public to access live footage of the tree at any time, through The Tree Council website.
Comments