The Silwood Giant
Julian Forbes-Laird writes:
Another ancient tree found by Alistair Baxter (pictured) and I… This sweet chestnut’s 3.25m diameter stem suggests it is around 900-920 years old if it is a maiden tree, but if it was a coppice it would probably be 270 years old. A third possibility is that the tree was felled and has then regrown uncut, making it neither a maiden nor a coppice.
This species can be very difficult to date!
