Over the new year holiday, our Barrister Paul was in Somerset, where he saw a thriving yew at Nettlecombe, with lots of lower branches cut off. This is unnecessary mutilation designed to keep the yew in check. One of the saddest examples of this practise is the ‘Leaning Yew’ of Llanwenarth Citra, near Abergavenny. Here a branch travels 30 feet in the direction of the lean, desperately trying to touch down, in order to prop the tree up but all efforts are thwarted by it being cut off, meaning that sooner, rather than later, this yew of almost 2,000 years will fall over.
More sympathetic and prudent are the custodians of Cantref, near Brecon who listened to advise after some of their yews were blown down in gales and who will now place wooden props to support the remaining yews, while leading branches are allowed to descend to the ground in order to take root and stabilise the trees. The yew knows what it needs and if we valued them we would help them, protect them and stop vandalising them.
Yews falling over are just one of the excuses for destroying them. With this immortal tree, fallen sections can just be removed or stabilised, leaving the rest to grow and regenerate. It is quite unnecessary to remove the whole tree. Much effort was made to clear the remains of the fallen ancient yew at Llanfoist, including dragging by tractor, burning and poisoning. However despite all this unsuccessful effort, the old stump sprouted a beautiful new young branch. It takes considerable determination to destroy a yew! It is not for nothing that it is known as the Tree of Life. The great yew at Llanwrin, cut down in the 80’s, has regrown, like the yew at the Holy Well of Gwenlais, also in Wales.
Other excuses for wilful and unnecessary destruction and vandalism of our ancient living heritage yews range from tidying the church yard, to stopping yews from obscuring grave stones or making the whole place dark! In recent decades, the healthy old Saxon yew at Cilmery was destroyed for casting too much shadow, while another also in Powys at Cefnllys, was deliberately set fire to and burnt alive like another at Llanelen in Gower. Other yews can be destroyed for a new building extension as at Ashford Carbonnel, or even simply a public toilet! A yew known as the Witch Tree at Hagley in Worcestershire, may have been destroyed for being a ‘pagan’ tree, while one at Uffculme was destroyed for being too old. We need to seriously question our values.
Slowly but surely most of our living heritage of yews will be destroyed, for one spurious reason or another, unless the law is changed. Please sign and share the petition to save the oldest trees in the world!
The yew here is the one at Llanwenarth Citra.