January 2024
St Paternus churchyard has always had trees. Over the years the type and number have changed, but they have always been a feature, as with the vast majority of churchyards. This photo shows how it appeared prior to the First World War (photo from Launceston Then).
Time and the elements take their toll, and inevitably the current trees won’t last forever, so we wanted to put something in place for the future. We were delighted to be given a number of saplings in early December and put together a working party to get them planted after obtaining the relevant permissions. The trees were donated by Forest for Cornwall, who also provided advice on suitable species for the site. Thanks are also due to Dan from Bees Trees for donating the chippings for mulch.
We have planted an avenue of rowan along the path to the church porch, which will eventually make a lovely approach, especially for weddings, a hedgerow and also a selection of native trees including crab apple, field maple and whitebeam. The star of the show (at least in 100 years or so!) is an oak sapling that was grown from an acorn from the Darley Oak.
This great oak is located at Darley Ford, just past Upton Cross, and is the oldest tree in Cornwall; it was selected as one of Britain’s 50 greatest trees in 2002. The Darley oak could well be over 1000 years old and despite it’s great age and hollow interior, it is still doing well.
The Darley Oak has many myths attached to it, including having healing properties, and granting any wish made next to it. It’s acorns are said to act as talismans. Whether or not our little sapling will attract such legends in the future we can only guess at, but it is rather wonderful to think it could still be there in another 1000 years. We hope all of our little trees will be a legacy for the future.
We have a little more work to do, but all should be completed by spring. We then have some other projects to get off the ground (watch this space). We can always use more help – please get in touch if you can spare the odd hour or just pop over for a chat if we’re working in the churchyard.
More information on Forest for Cornwall can be found at: www.cornwall.gov.uk/environment/countryside/forest-for-cornwall-programme
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