Britain's oldest tree could be dead in fifty years because tourists keep ripping off its branches and keeping them as souvenirs, environmentalists have warned. The Fortingall Yew in Perthshire is thought to be between 3,000 to 5,000 years old. The tree, which stands tall inside the Fortingall Churchyard in Perthshire, has been left in increasingly bad health because of tourists.
Despite now being surrounded by a cage, tourists visiting Fortingall have allegedly been taking cuttings from the ancient yew. Catherine Lloyd, co-ordinator of the Tayside Biodiversity Community Partnership, said the tree has become stressed. She said, “They are attacking this poor tree so it's stressed, but whether that's the reason why this poor tree is not doing very well at the moment, we don't know.”
Neil Hooper, the tree warden for Fortingall, said they can't tell how many visitors have attacked the tree, but certainly some branches have been torn off. He said the more common problem came from visitors climbing into the enclosure, via a listed wall, to tie ribbons to the tree's branches. Mr Hooper said, “Recently the metal plaque put up by the Tree Council has been forced down and twisted flat face down, which must have been taken considerable force, also by someone climbing into the enclosure.”
Now, in a bid to keep the original specimen alive, seedlings from the yew will be planted in Perthshire and Angus, as well at the Royal Botanic Garden Edinburgh. Catherine said, “I would love to look back into time. You look at it and think it's been there for at least 3,000 years, 1,000 years before the Romans came across Scotland. But we know so little about it. I will try my best to know more it.”
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