Yahoo News King Charles first recipient of Sycamore Gap seedling in honour of national Celebration Day
King Charles has been confirmed as the first recipient of a Sycamore Gap seedling.
The seedling is one of 100 seedlings and 40 cuttings propagated at the National Trust's plant conservation centre in Devon which were rescued after the tree was illegally felled in September. King Charles, who is Patron of the conservation charity and was its president from 2003 - 2022, has confirmed that when the seedling will be planted in Windsor Great Park when it matures into a sapling.
He has been gifted the sapling in honour of Celebration Day, on May 27, which is a national day dedicated to remembering and celebrating people who are no longer with us, the National Trust said. It comes just days after a Sycamore Gap sapling was planted at the Chelsea Flower Show by Northumberland schoolgirl Charlotte Crowe and legend of stage and screen, Dame Judi Dench
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Both seedlings will continue to be cared for by expert horticulturists until they are ready for planting. The charity says that planting plans for the other surviving seedlings will be announced later this year, including in Northumberland.
It is hoped that the trees all seedlings grow into will distribute their own seeds widely through the wind. In a social media post, Buckingham Palace said: "Part of the power of trees to move and console us lies in the continuity and hope they represent: the sense that, rooted in the past and flourishing in the present, their seeds will be carried into an as yet unimaginable future."
Hilary McGrady, director general of the National Trust, said that it was wonderful news that the King will one day have the tree's very first sapling. She said: "The new tree will be seen by many thousands each year and will be the first of many Sycamore Gap saplings planted at different places, in Northumberland and beyond.
"The swell of emotion we saw after the sycamore was felled goes to show how personally connected we all are to our natural heritage. These new green shoots are keeping the story of the Sycamore Gap alive, and are serving as a reminder of the simple, and much-needed hope, joy and respite that nature can bring."
Andy Jasper, director of Gardens and Parklands at the National Trust, said: "It was quite overwhelming and incredibly humbling to see the public’s reaction to the very first seedling to successfully germinate and grow at our special plant conservation centre, on display at the Chelsea Flower Show last week. Personally, it gave me so much joy to tell its story to the thousands of visitors to the stand – and to witness and to feel the outpouring of emotions first-hand of what this tiny sapling means to so many across the country."
The trial of two men accused of deliberately felling Sycamore Gap will continue on June 12, after the case was deemed "too serious" for Magistrates Court earlier this month.
