Hope for Iconic Sycamore Gap Tree as Seeds and Cuttings ‘Viable’

The National Trust has announced that the seeds and cuttings taken from the beloved Northumberland tree, which was felled during the night between 27 and 28 September, are showing ‘positive signs’ of being viable for propagation.

The Sycamore Gap Tree stood at a dramatic dip along Hadrian’s Wall, and was made famous worldwide by its appearance in Kevin Costner’s 1991 film Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves, which also gained it the nickname of ‘Robin Hood Tree’. The Northumbria police is investigating the incident, with three men arrested and now on police bail as the investigation continues.

As police began enquiries, the National Trust had their experts collect seeds and cuttings from the felled Sycamore Gap tree, hoping they would be viable and allow them to grow descendants.

Signs of Life

On Wednesday Andy Jasper, Director of Gardens and Parklands at the National Trust, announced that there are indeed sigs of life.

“After discovering the felled tree, our teams were quickly on the scene to collect material that would enable us to propagate from the tree,” he said. “This work is taking place in our specialist rare plant propagation nursery and although this wasn’t really the right time of year to do this work, we are encouraged by positive signs of life, and are hopeful that over 30 per cent of the mature seeds and half of the cuttings (scions) will be viable, which means we can hopefully grow new descendants from the tree in the future.

“Over the next year, we’ll be doing all we can to nurture the seeds and cuttings, in the hope that some will grow into strong, sturdy saplings – providing a new future for this much-loved tree. We are also hoping that the trunk of the original tree will regrow, but it could take up to three years before we know if this is possible.”

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