The UK Tree of the Year has been announced as the Skipinnish Oak; an ancient oak in the Scottish Highlands that has been estimated to be over 1,000 years old. Despite its age, Native woodland experts had no knowledge of its existence until a gathering in 2009, at which the band Skipinnish was performing. The band knew of the oak and led conservationists to where it was hidden in a non-native Sitka spruce plantation on Achnacarry Estate.
Skipinnish Oak has beaten 11 other contenders in the Woodland Trust competition, which was determined through a public vote. The Darwin Oak in Shrewsbury came second and in third was the 1,000-year-old Bowthorpe Oak in Lincolnshire. Skipinnish, the band which led to the discovery of the ancient oak, is currently composing a new song in honour of the winner. The tune is set to be performed for the first time at a gig in Glasgow next year.
Andrew Stevenson, a Skipinnish band member who grew up in Lochaber, knew of the ancient oak tree from his childhood. Stevenson says “I am delighted that the Skipinnish Oak has won Tree of the Year. The tree has held a special place in my heart since my father first described it to me, and the first time I saw it many years ago.” George Anderson of Woodland Trust Scotland, has described the Skipinnish Oak as “the tree that time forgot, but the piper remembered.”
Native woodland is critical to maintaining biodiversity in the UK. This type of woodland is home to hundreds of species of trees and plants that have evolved in the UK ecosystem over thousands of years. Many of these trees are also integral to the culture and history of the UK; for example, medieval forests and the trees that formed part of historic landscapes. The Skipinnish Oak is a reminder of the ancient trees that still exist in the UK and their importance in preserving the UK’s ecological diversity
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