• Home
  • about
  • about the photographs
  • Rhos-on-Sea
    • St.Trillo’s Chapel
  • Bryn Euryn Local Nature Reserve
  • Bryn Pydew Nature Reserve
  • Mynydd Marian
  • Coed Pwllycrochan Wood
  • Rhiwledyn Nature Reserve
    • Grey Seals in North Wales
  • Great Orme
  • Llanddwyn Island & Newborough Warren
  • The Wales Coast Path
  • Wildflowers of Coastal Paths, Cliffs and Dunes

everyday nature trails

everyday nature trails

Tag Archives: St Digain’s Church

An Ancient Yew

11 Monday Jan 2016

Posted by theresagreen in Nature, Nature of Wales, North Wales, Welsh culture and mythology

≈ 18 Comments

Tags

Ancient Trees, ancient yew trees, Llangernyw Yew, St Digain's Church, taxus baccata

There are just three species of conifer that are true natives of Britain; the Yew-Taxus baccata, the Juniper-Juniperus communis and the Scots Pine-Pinus sylvestris. All of them are found growing ‘in the wild’ in this part of North Wales, but of the three species it is the Yew that predominates.

150104TGFL-Bryn Euryn 4-Yew leavesThe Yew tree is a familiar sight in many churchyards throughout Great Britain and some are even older than the Christian faith itself due to their ability to regenerate and regrow. Wales is one of the most significant places in Europe for ancient and veteran yew trees and most are found in churchyards. Sacred to Druids and Celts, yews would have marked venerated places in pre-history, many of which became Christian sites later on. Our wet climate and lower light levels led to a deeper veneration of one of the few native evergreen plants.

The subject of this post is the most ancient of them all. It is located in the churchyard of St. Digain’s in the small village of Llangernyw, sited in the Elwy Valley in Conwy county, which I went to see on a lovely day at the end of last autumn.

This amazing tree is recognised as the oldest known tree in Wales and England and furthermore, at an estimated 4,000 years old  as one of the oldest living things in the world. There are no barriers or signs prohibiting you from approaching or touching the tree, which is a rare privilege in itself, but to be in the presence of a living entity that may have begun its life in what was the Bronze Age in Britain is incredible.

The Old Yew Tree St Digain's, Llangernyw

The Old Yew Tree, St Digain’s, Llangernyw

151022-Llangernyw-Ancient Yew 4a

The tree is male, so bears no berries. The body of the tree is fragmented; its core part has been lost, leaving several enormous offshoots growing from its base, still thriving despite not always being treated with the respect it commands now. In the mid-1990s the church oil tank stood in the space between the two trunk fragments and much of the dead wood was removed  from the site when the tank was built, which made dating the age of the tree more difficult for experts in the field (known as dendrochronologists). Thankfully the tank was removed when it was realised that the tree was ancient.

The fragmented trunk of the tree

The fragmented trunk of the tree

In 1995 a plaque was erected by the Tree Council giving the estimated age of the tree as just over 4,000 years; the age being determined by a calculation using a formula based on the girth if the tree, which is a mighty 12.5 metres, or 41 feet at ground level.
151022-Llangernyw-Ancient Yew monument stone 1

In June 2002, the tree was granted more recogntion by the Tree Council, in celebration of the Golden Jubilee of Queen Elizabeth II, it designated the Llangernyw Yew tree one of the Fifty Great British trees in recognition of its place in national heritage.

Looking up into the canopy

Looking up into the canopy

According to a survey by the Ancient Yew Group, the Church in Wales owns 334 yew trees which are more than 500-years-old, which they equate to owning 95% of all the Grade 1 listed buildings in Wales.

Celtic cross memorial stone

Celtic cross memorial stone

The original church was founded here by Digain, son of Cystenyn Gorneu, a Saint of the 5th Century. Parts of the attractive building now standing date back to the early 15th century, including the roof construction, an interior door and the stoup.

St Digain's Church, Llangernyw, in the parish of St Asaph

St Digain’s Church, Llangernyw, in the parish of St Asaph

There are  other yew trees growing within the site and the church is framed in the photograph above by trees that flank the lych gate.

151022-Llangernyw-Church lych gate and yew trees 1

Lych gate and yew trees

The lych gate was erected in 1745 at a cost of three pounds, fifteen shillings and sixpence in old money; £3.76p now.

151022-Llangernyw-Church from the back 1

The church from the back

Some interesting pieces from the church interior:

151022-Llangernyw-Church inside 2a
The font
The font
151022-Llangernyw-Church organ 1
151022-Llangernyw-Church furniture 1
151022-Llangernyw-Church stained glass window 1
151022-Llangernyw-Church stained glass window 2a
151022-Llangernyw-Church window 1

It’s well worth visiting Llangernyw for the wonderful scenery surrounding the village – the road from Abergele to Llanwrst is rightfully designated a ‘scenic route’.

(click on images for a  better view)

151022-Llangernyw-Llanwrst view 4a151022-Llangernyw-Llanwrst view 5a151022-Llangernyw-Llanwrst view 9a

Before I go, I’d like to wish everyone a happy, healthy, peaceful 2016 and to thank all of those that have followed, commented and/or liked posts and pages on this blog during 2015. Thank you for your loyalty too; the recent lack of posts are due to a challenging health issue that presented itself in the last months of 2015, with no warning (!), that will demand a few months more of treatment and may commute my meanderings to ‘potterings’. Posts may be erratic for a while, but the best therapy for me is getting out and about, so as and when weather permits I will be checking on what’s happening around me and keeping things current. Meanwhile I have a whole library of photographs to draw on and look forward to seeing and hearing what you are all up to.

 

Share this:

  • Facebook
  • Pinterest
  • Twitter

Like this:

Like Loading...
Follow everyday nature trails on WordPress.com

Enter your email address to follow this blog and receive notifications of new posts by email.

‘But it is the common species that keep the living world ticking over and provide most of our experiences of wildlife, and I would argue that maintaining the abundance of these is as important a conservation priority as maintaining the existence of rarities’. Richard Mabey

MOST RECENT POSTS

  • On a Cool, Damp Day in Early Spring… April 16, 2023
  • Wild on the Streets March 30, 2023
  • Scouting Signs of Spring March 16, 2023
  • January on the Bryn January 21, 2023
  • Squirrelling Away…… October 23, 2022
  • Conwy Marine Walk February 15, 2022

OLDER POSTS

LOOKING FOR SOMETHING IN PARTICULAR?

  • The Foxglove - of Fairytales, Myths & Medicine
    The Foxglove - of Fairytales, Myths & Medicine
  • Mynydd Marian
    Mynydd Marian
  • Pretty prickly Thistles
    Pretty prickly Thistles
  • Grey Seals in North Wales
    Grey Seals in North Wales
  • Wildflowers of Coastal Paths, Cliffs and Dunes
    Wildflowers of Coastal Paths, Cliffs and Dunes
  • Spot the 'greens' on the Little Orme, but please don't eat them!
    Spot the 'greens' on the Little Orme, but please don't eat them!
  • The life of a Yellow Dung-fly
    The life of a Yellow Dung-fly
  • The blackberry bramble
    The blackberry bramble
  • Following a river to a Fairy Glen
    Following a river to a Fairy Glen
  • Butterflies of the Great Orme
    Butterflies of the Great Orme

nightingale trails

The Walk of the Monarch Butterfly-Sendero de la Mariposa Monarca

The Walk of the Monarch Butterfly-Sendero de la Mariposa Monarca

MY WILDFLOWER BLOG: where the wildflowers are

Snowdrop

Snowdrop

most recent posts

Follow everyday nature trails on WordPress.com

Social

  • View teresamaygreen’s profile on Twitter

Enter your email address to follow this blog and receive notifications of new posts by email.

Website Built with WordPress.com.

  • Follow Following
    • everyday nature trails
    • Join 346 other followers
    • Already have a WordPress.com account? Log in now.
    • everyday nature trails
    • Customize
    • Follow Following
    • Sign up
    • Log in
    • Report this content
    • View site in Reader
    • Manage subscriptions
    • Collapse this bar
 

Loading Comments...
 

    %d bloggers like this: