Historic Churchyard Yews
Toby Hindson
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An ancient yew in the churchyard of St John the Baptist, Tisbury, Wiltshire (Photo: Jonathan Taylor, all other photos: Toby Hindson) |
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Many of the yews that exist
in our churchyards are widely
held to pre-date the Christian
consecration of the church site. This
exaggeration has its roots in Victorian
guidebooks and wishful local histories.
Such yews do exist in British churchyards,
but investigations by the Ancient Yew
Group (AYG) show that while the myths
surrounding them are many, pre-Christian
yews themselves are relatively few.
Many of our oldest churchyard yews
were planted around the time of the
original Christian consecration of the
churchyards in which they stand. Such
‘consecration yews’ are integral to their
site, and stand as witness to all that has
happened at the church of which they
are part, familiar to all who ever set foot
there.
Some consecration yews original Saxon or Norman
trees, others are of a later date depending
on the era of the first Christian building
on the site. Important renovations also
seem to have triggered yew plantings and
some fall into this category.
The oldest consecration yews are up to
1,400 years old. Although we do not know
exactly why (there are many theories), it is
evident that the planting of yews has been
a part of site consecration throughout
Christian history in Britain – a tradition
that continues today. The AYG contends
that consecration yews should be treated
as artefacts of historic significance equal
to that of other original parts of the
church building and its setting.
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The fragmented but self-supporting shell of the immensely ancient yew at Farringdon Churchyard in Hampshire: it remains almost unchanged in girth (9m or 30 feet) since it was measured by Gilbert White about 1789. |
As for those yews which do seem
to pre-date Christianity, these are rare,
staggeringly important in national or even
international terms, immensely interesting
and most exceptional. A few such
specimens are mentioned below.
Knowing a yew’s age is key to
understanding its historical significance. It
is understandable that some might query
the AYG’s age estimates because these
sometimes conflict with previous efforts
to date a particular tree. Even after 200
years the science of yew dating remains in
some turmoil. The chief problem is that
the oldest yews are hollow. Through the
centuries broken branches and injuries
to the trunk allow access to bacteria and
fungi which cause rot to begin in the
wood at the centre of the tree. This rotting
is almost inevitable over the huge lifespan
of the yew, and because yew wood is
exceptionally strong and flexible does not
harm the living parts of the tree as it often
does other species. However, because
the oldest wood is missing, radiocarbon
and dendrochronological investigations
cannot be definitive.
A case in point is the Defynnog yew
in Powys. In July 2014 several national
newspapers carried articles claiming that
this particular yew (or pair of yews) was
5,000 years old. However, when the Ancient
Yew Group examined the evidence, it was
found to be pseudo-scientific and highly
selective, relying solely on evidence which
appeared to support the inflated age while
ignoring important evidence which refuted
it. (Details of the case are available on the
AYG website).
Unconvincing claims like this have been
common in the past but as the AYG
continues its cataloguing and statistical
dating work, a clearer and more scientific
picture of our oldest trees is emerging.
THE AYG YEW LISTS
Using the firm knowledge it has gathered,
the Ancient Yew Group has produced a
list of all the known significant yews in
Britain. Every yew on the list is considered
particularly worthy of careful protection
and is rated ‘ancient’, ‘veteran’ or simply
‘notable’. Just over 1,000 churchyards in
England contain AYG-listed yews, and
154 of them contain ancient specimens.
In Wales there are nearly 350 churchyards
with yews of note, and of these 84 contain
ancient trees. While the list of notable
yews remains a work in progress, the
group believes it has covered almost all
churchyards which have an ancient or
veteran yew, and the information for each
church and diocese is freely available on
the AYG website.
IS OUR YEW ANCIENT?
A simple means of assessment is to
measure the girth of the yew’s trunk at
its narrowest point. If it exceeds – or is
known in the past to have exceeded – five
metres in girth, the tree is likely to be
veteran. If the girth exceeds seven metres
then it is probably ancient. Sometimes it
can be demonstrated that smaller yews
are likely to be veteran or ancient. If you
have a large unlisted yew, please contact
the AYG via its website and a specialist
will come and assess it.
AGEING AND REGENERATION
As they progress through various life
stages old yews come to the attention
of those responsible for churchyard
maintenance. Some individual yews are
explored below exemplifying problems
and maintenance issues and solutions.
Among the yews which can be
considered for pre-Christian status is the
large yew in the churchyard at Tandridge,
first documented in A Topographical
History of Surrey by EW Brayley (1841): ‘At
the west end, is a large decayed yew-tree,
split into four or five parts, and in a state
of rapid decay. At five feet [1.5 metres]
from the ground, its circumference is
nearly thirty feet [9.1 metres]’.
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Above left: the vast yew at Tandridge churchyard in Surrey. Above right: the extraordinary complexity of the Crowhurst yew in Sussex has developed over two millennia or more, making the tree unique and irreplaceable. |
Although reported to be in a state of
serious decay in 1841 the tree survived and
now flourishes as one of the best and most
spectacular specimens in the world. The
lesson of history is that very old yews can
regenerate satisfactorily, and seemingly
irreversible decay and destruction of parts
are incidents which, in the long-term, the
organism takes in its stride.
The Tandridge yew’s base
circumference was less than 10.5m when
recorded in 1890, and in the last 125
years it has increased during the flush
of regeneration by 53cm to nearly 11m.
This increase is likely to be faster than
the growth rate during the earlier period
of decay when girth increase may have
virtually stalled. The yew’s projected age
exceeds two millennia, placing the tree
in the illustrious company of yews at
Farringdon and Breamore in Hampshire,
the two Crowhursts in Sussex and Surrey,
Herstmonceaux in Sussex, Ashbrittle in
Somerset, Norbury in Shropshire, and
Llangernyw, Discoed and Bettws Newydd
in Wales among others.
The Tandridge yew’s successful
regeneration is very likely in large part
due to the canopy being allowed to grow
freely, and the fact that a fractured and
subsided trunk section was allowed
to grow out along the ground towards
the lych gate. Around the time of the
first world war when the tree had
considerably recovered, most of the
fallen trunk section was removed, but
two substantial layers were sensibly left
as by then it had established roots of its
own. The result is that we now have new
young trees that are genetically identical
with the original.
Here is a way forward in terms of
a philosophy of maintenance. Yews
have many survival mechanisms, and
sometimes what looks to human eyes
like a disaster may be one of these
mechanisms in progress. On the
whole, where there is no likelihood
of damage to persons or property
a yew should be left alone.
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Plan of the ancient north yew at Long Sutton, Hampshire showing the use of props to support branches |
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There are occasional exceptions,
however. At Long Sutton churchyard
in Hampshire a hollow ancient yew has
been effectively propped. The treatment
here is an excellent example of best
practice. The tree is so hollow that the
‘walls’ of the trunk are only barely capable
of supporting the re-growth of branch
material emanating from them and there
were occasional losses, as in 2000 when
a metre wide section of trunk fell when
overloaded by snow. Another fallen
section has long been allowed to lie in
situ, where it continues to grow.
A number of safe propping methods
exist, at Wilmington in Sussex telegraph
poles have been used to good effect, while
at Long Sutton the props are squared
timber with a footplate to prevent them
from sinking into the ground, and
rubber ties to prevent movement at the
join between the prop and the branch.
Propping should always be carried out
by a qualified arboriculturist. Although
trouble-free when done expertly, this
work has potential hazards, not least that
an incorrectly installed prop fails, causing
damage or injuring someone. The safety
of props needs regular review and an
arboriculturist’s plan should detail such
aftercare. From a procedural point of
view, proposals to prop a branch should
be treated as if the tree was to be cut and
a faculty is required.
VANDALISM
Although inadvertent vandalism due
to ill-advised arboricultural practice
has been distressingly common in the
past, thankfully deliberate vandalism is
quite rare. Recent cases include a well-documented
ancient yew at St Mary’s
Church in Iffley, Oxon which has a
good claim to being contemporary with
the original Norman church. This tree
was completely stripped of the bark
on a major limb by local youths with
nothing better to do. The only course
in this instance is to remove the limb,
which cannot recover without bark,
and to instruct the local youths.
At St Mary’s Church in Linton,
Herefordshire a fire was set inside the
hollow of the vast and venerable yew.
Despite the ferocity of the blaze as the
inner wood burned, the tree narrowly
survived and now flourishes again,
another cautionary tale regarding the
inadvisability of removing damaged or
declining yews.
Nothing can stop vandals if they are
absolutely bent on destruction, but some
things can be done to reduce the risk of
this kind of damage. Twiggy lower trunk
growths are sharp and uninviting, mildly
dangerous and often removed to show
the shape of the trunk, but they do work
rather well as an anti-vandal ‘coating’, so
where the risk of vandal damage is present
keeping such twigs should be considered.
The churchyard of St George’s
Church in Crowhurst, Sussex boasts one of the oldest yews in England, probably
a pre-Christian tree. This specimen is
surrounded by an iron railing, as is the
huge yew at South Hayling in Hampshire.
Fencing is a good solution for reducing
footfall compaction of the rooting zone of
the yew and eliminating casual vandalism
but done properly it can be expensive.
IVY
Ivy is not generally a problem for yews
in the wild because the yew’s dense
canopy and surrounding vegetation tends
to shade it out. For yews managed by
humans, however, it is a different story.
Raised canopies and the clearing of
undergrowth allow more light to the base
of a yew, helping ivy to flourish.
Ivy is a stealthy killer of old yews,
once established in the canopy it will
reduce the vigour of the tree through
shading, and it can act like a sail, changing
the wind balance and weight of upright
sections which can lead to the tree being
wind-felled. Ivy may be a great habitat,
but if it is welcome in the churchyard
it should be allowed to colonise less
significant trees, not ancient yews.
ERRORS OF THE PAST
The greatest threat to historic yews
has been unenlightened management.
Damaging interventions include: felling
ancient specimens because they were
untidy or looked ‘ill’, filling hollow trunks
with everything from concrete through
foam filler to plastic bottles, weed killing with salts over the active rooting area,
chopping the top of the tree off and
hoping it will regenerate… the list goes on.
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PRINCIPLES OF CARE
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- Only carry out work which is clearly necessary
- don’t let ivy grow up the tree
- if work is needed, useful non-intrusive interventions include weeding, fencing and mulching
- cutting or propping the tree must be left to specialist qualified professionals; British Standards (especially BS3998:2010: Tree work. Recommendations) and Faculty legislation apply
- unauthorised works to trees covered by tree protection orders or in churchyards which fall within conservation areas may lead to prosecution.[1]
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Suffice it to say that humans with
poisons, chainsaws and plastics in
the recent past have represented the
biggest threat to these trees, some of
which have effectively looked after
themselves since they were planted by
Saxon or sometimes even older hands. Work should never be undertaken on
an old yew without expert advice.
THE TOTTERIDGE YEW
At St Andrew’s Church in Totteridge
stands a very old ‘consecration yew’
of Saxon provenance, with a broad,
dead-looking trunk and a small bushy
canopy. The tree has a long history and
was first measured by Sir John Cullum
in 1677 at 26 feet in girth. Re-measures
through the years yielded the same result,
which remains the same to this day.
This represents a conundrum, because a
growth stall of over 300 years should have
killed it and the outer parts of the tree are
in fact dead.
The tree survives because it is
growing inside its old trunk: a mass of
strong and convoluted internal roots
which support most of the branches.
After three centuries like that the old
trunk looks set to fall away and expose
the new core that the tree has made for
itself, except for a number of narrow
runs of new vigorous wood which have
inexplicably managed to grow up the
old trunk surface like woody rivers.
The work of the churchwardens and
others associated with the churchyard
has been exemplary, the tree has been
suitably mulched to try to invigorate it
and nothing has been cut off it. It has
been able to regenerate in a fashion that
no-one could have predicted; an excellent
intervention for a temporarily somewhat
parlous Saxon yew, which has worked
very well. This incredible treasure was
spared removal and is responding to
gentle encouragement.
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Notes
[1] See Dr Charles Mynors’ ‘Unauthorised Works’, Historic Churches 2012, Paragraph 8
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