Good news announced today. Several new shoots have been found regrowing from the stump of the Sycamore tree on Hadrian's Wall. They are still very small but it is hoped they will grow into ‘new’ trees around the original stump. It will never be the same as the tree that was cut down, but at least it is showing signs of life...
Posted by
Duluth 🛶
7566 posts
Oh, that's great news, wasleys! I'm so happy to hear that! Thanks for the update.
Posted by
OP
Lincolnshire, UK
2204 posts
I was thinking about you Mardee when I posted this!
Posted by
Seattle, WA
17225 posts
I suspect they are sprouts growing from the roots—-aka “suckers”. This is not too unusual for sycamore trees. The eight new sprouts could form a ring around the stump, and end up appearing as a multi-trunked shrub for a time.
The National Trust is also raising new “offspring” from the felled tree from seeds and cuttings. The cuttings, if they take root and grow, will be clones of the original tree. The seedlings will be genetically different, as children are from their parents.
Posted by
Yorkshire
1333 posts
It’s ALIVE!!! (In a melodramatic, Frankenstein film sort of way….)
Good news. Maybe in around 200 years it will more resemble the tree that was so cruelly felled. A bit of long term thinking. Hopefully Hadrians Wall and associated stuff is in it for the long game anyway.
Posted by
2536 posts
These new shoots will never resemble the original tree. It would be better to kill off the old stump and plant a new sycamore a few metres south of the original.
Posted by
Vancouver, BC
286 posts
There is a small tree to the North of the stump. It's also visible in the Kevin Costner film.
I made my daughter hike up there on the evening of a full moon last month. The wall is stunning in the moonlight.
Posted by
Yorkshire
1333 posts
Hi James -
I totally agree that it’s unlikely any new growth would ultimately resemble the original. I suspect that even a new planting wouldn’t be guaranteed to resemble the original either. I think the important aspect of the new shoots is that it represents some sort of continuity with the past. Quite appropriate for a site on Hadrian’s Wall really!
Ian