Silsoe - Wrest Park (Bedfordshire)

Thanks to Tracy for sending photographs of three of the Giant Sequoias at Wrest Park. Tracy said, "I saw at least one other tree at the park, and I'm almost certain there were more." Wrest Park sounds like a place that needs a summer afternoon spent exploring the grounds.

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Thanks to Matthew for the above photographs of the unusual branch arrangement of one of the Giant Sequoias at Wrest Park. Matthew said, "I was with the family at English Heritage location Silsoe -Wrest Park in Bedfordshire. While there I saw the weirdest Giant Redwood I've seen. You already have it on your website, it is the photo on the bottom left of your page. When I first saw it I thought it was one old Giant Redwood with numerous younger Giant Redwoods planted closely around it. But when I got close, I found it was all the same tree! The large tree has numerous low branches which grow out very large & far from the central growth, then turn upwards & continue growing vertically, looking like young trees. A very weird, but lovely tree with loads of character."

It certainly is unusual Matt, I have seen a few like it but it is quite rare. Here are a few other examples: Cambridge University Botanical Gardens Audley End Somerleyton Hall (a film of a walk round the Somerleyton tree)

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Thanks to Lindsey for writing to us in January 2020 and providing us with some interesting history about this tree. She wrote "I found reference to your web site when trying to find the date on which the above tree was planted. I have some cones from it, collected when I visited Wrest Park a few years ago. The tree was originally planted in a pot and taken into the house at Christmas by my 3 x great Uncle Seward Snow and nurtured after his death by his nephew, my great grandmother's cousin, George Ford. I believe that the tree was originally planted in 1856. Seward Snow was notable in horticultural circles in Victorian times, winning many prizes at large shows. He also produced the first Hamburg-Muscat grape and a variety of broccoli, amongst other new varieties of plants. " It's great to have these details about the origins of the Redwoods, thank you again for sharing your research.