European Tree of the Year
The Nail tree, Voeren, Belgium: This horse chestnut (Aesculus hippocastanum)
was considered to be a magic tree during the middle ages. Sick people
seeking a cure came to hammer a nail into its bark. They rubbed the nail
on the afflicted part of their body and then hammered it into the tree
hoping that the healthy wood would absorb their pain. Age: from the
middle ages
Photograph: The Woodland Trust
France has a ‘beard tree’, UK ‘Major Oak’, Czech Republic has a ‘dragon pine’ and Italy has a majestic olive tree that is 2,000-year-old, then there is the ‘nail tree’ of Belgium and Estonia’s oak that is slap bang in the middle of a football pitch. There are more, and all are fascinating specimen of nature – old and ancient, silent witnesses of history, each with a fascinating story behind it.
The Guardian, Monday 2 February 2015 16.38 GMT
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