Farewell, Tolkien’s Tree

As an unidentified writer titled the story from the Oxford University news and events page that an old tree Tolkien liked has to be cut down.

Oxford University’s Botanic Garden is planning a send-off for the iconic black pine known as ‘Tolkien’s tree’, which needs to be removed from the Garden after two limbs fell from the tree on Saturday.

The tree, a Pinus nigra, was a favourite of J R R Tolkien during his time in Oxford and some say its twisting branches resemble the ‘ents’ in his The Lord of the Rings novels.

. . .  Dr Alison Foster, acting director of the Garden, said: ‘The black pine was a highlight of many people’s visits to the Botanic Garden and we are very sad to lose such an iconic tree. We intend to propagate from this magnificent tree so that future generations will not miss out on this important link to Tolkien. We are considering using the wood from the black pine for an educational project along the lines of the One Oak project and hope to hold a celebratory event to commemorate the tree and its many associations in due course.

My thanks to William Tighe for passing on the story.