Giant sequoia in Exeter to be felled

Image source, Exeter City Council

Image caption, The tree is located at Pinces Gardens allotments in Exeter

  • Author, Eva Watson
  • Role, BBC News, South West

A giant sequoia tree in Exeter, thought to be more than 100 years old, will have to be felled because it is in poor condition, the city council has announced.

The tree is in the Pinces Gardens allotments and Exeter City Council has said it must be felled for safety reasons.

The council’s tree experts confirmed that the tree, which is about 75 feet tall and is a descendant of California’s giant sequoias, is beyond saving and that 95 percent of its foliage has turned brown.

Ruth Williams, the council’s lead councillor for urban management, said the tree was “beyond saving” and that once the tree is felled the council “will consider planting another tree of a species more appropriate to the allotment site”.

‘Beyond saving’

According to experts, the tree’s root system has been affected and there is also damage from historic fire around the base of the tree.

Ms Williams said: “Nobody likes to cut down trees, especially one as iconic as this one – so beloved by so many locals – but sadly this tree is beyond saving and will have to be cut down to make it safe.”

The felling will probably take place before the end of the year, provided a permit has been issued, as the tree is located in a protected area.

The council said it plans to dismantle the tree by lifting and hoisting, as there is no access for a crane or mobile elevating work platform.

The tree is believed to have originated from a shipment of seeds collected at Calaveras Grove in California that arrived in England in December 1853.

The seeds from this batch were widely distributed throughout Europe.

The council manages the giant sequoias in Exeter and in 2011 four young specimens were planted in the Pinces gardens.

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