The Oak Tree

One of the country’s foremost gardening experts, Pippa Greenwood delves into the heart of English flora and the English psyche for her icon nomination.

“Of all the English trees the oak is the most representative of a major element of the English character. It is one of our longest living trees – it takes more than 70 years before it produces acorns and after 100 years of growth it then grows at a slower pace. It has been used for building houses and ships and making charcoal. Indeed in Elizabethan times a law was passed to protect the tree as it had been so widely used, most of the major oak forests had been felled. A remedial programme at that stage has given us the woods we have at present, while individual oaks were usually planted to mark boundaries.”

Read more about and vote on the oak tree.

Image of Pippa Greenwood ©topfoto.co.uk UPPA Ltd
Image of oak trees ©topfoto.co.uk