England

By David Keys

The mighty oak has been central to English history and culture for centuries. Now new research is revealing precisely why.

A nationwide survey has just revealed that England has more ancient oak trees than the rest of Europe put together.

Over the past four years, tree historians have discovered 1,200 previously unknown but still surviving mediaeval and Tudor oaks, pushing the grand total for such trees in England to a remarkable 3,400.

By Joe Wilkinson

England could be on the verge of a new tree planting boom after a forestry innovation fund launched by a Government minister at a Confor event received applications to plant more than 1,000 hectares of new woodland. Rory Stewart MP launched the £1 million Forestry Innovation Fund at Modern Forestry: Unleashing the Rural Potential at Westminster last November.

The tree, made famous by Robin Hood, beat off fierce competition from Old Knobbley in Essex and the Ickwell Oak in Bedfordshire to poll 18% of almost 13,000 vo