Fresh shoots grown from the felled Sycamore Gap tree are set to ‘spread hope throughout the nation’ as the recipients are announced
A prison, a scout group and a cricket club are among the new homes for dozens of saplings that have been grown from the seeds of the iconic Sycamore Gap tree.
The 200-year-old tree had become one of the most photographed in Britain and was a beloved feature of the Northumbrian landscape at a dell on Hadrian’s Wall. It was chopped down illegally in an act of vandalism in 2023, provoking a global outcry of sadness and disbelief.
The National Trust announced in September it would create a legacy for the tree by gifting 49 saplings – one for each foot of the sycamore’s height – to communities around the UK.
The charity received more than 500 applications for the saplings and announced the recipients on Friday. They include the Tree Amigos – a group of Coventry-based teenagers who set up a sanctuary to nurse trees damaged by vandalism back to health.
“This special tree will be planted next year among the other ‘lost’ trees in our care, serving as a beacon to inspire respect, understanding and a sense of responsibility toward all trees,” said the sanctuary’s Martha Irwin.
Leeds Teaching Hospital NHS Trust will also receive a sapling for its new Rob Burrow Centre for Motor Neurone Disease, due to open in summer 2025.
Other recipients include a mining disaster commemoration group, a deaf and blind society and Morton Hall prison in Lincolnshire.
The National Trusts judging panel said it had been a ‘privilege’ to read applications for the saplings. “Each and every application for a Tree of Hope told heartfelt stories of people’s emotional connections to the Sycamore Gap tree and the importance of nature,” said Andrew Poad, general manager for the National Trust’s Hadrian Wall properties. “They spoke of loss, hope and regeneration from all four corners of the UK.
“Each sapling will carry a message of hope with it as they start a new chapter not just for the tree but for all the 49 people and communities that will receive a sapling next year.”
Main image: National Trust Images/James Dobson
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49
saplings – one for each foot of the sycamore’s height – are being distributed to communities around the UK -
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The charity received more than 500 applications for the saplings and announced the recipients on Friday -
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The 200-year-old tree had become one of the most photographed in Britain and was a beloved feature of the Northumbrian landscape at a dell on Hadrian’s Wall
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