Ardingly - Wakehurst Place (Sussex) |
Wakehurst Place is administered by the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew and houses the Millenium Seed Bank where they hope to save species from extinction. The building where this work is being done is glass sided and the public can walk along viewing the various stages of seed preparation and progress by the many technicians employed there.
The first Redwood that you may encounter in the gardens is a variation called Pendulum. This very peculiar tree looks nothing like a Giant Redwood until it is examined closely, when the bark and the foliage reveal its true origins. This oddity comprises a single stem that leans precariously over to one side, with mane of straggly foliage dangling downwards. Shortly after that (travelling clockwise around the gardens), there are several very young Giant Redwoods and then by the house, several huge and fine examples. One of these is adorned with lights at Christmas and can be seen over two miles away at Balcombe. |
Travelling around the gardens, stopping at the viewpoint to admire the scenery, you will eventually arrive at Horsebridge Woods. Here a large Coast Redwood can be found, together with a fantastic grove of young and old Giant Redwoods ("old" in UK terms at least!). On two of the youngish trees there are plaques that state one is grown from a seed taken from the General Sherman tree, and the other from the General Grant tree, both among the most famous and largest of Giant Redwoods in America. Wakehurst Place is very much worth a visit and you can find out more on their web site. |
Thanks to Tam and Scott for this photograph taken in 2009 of "Britains tallest xmas tree"! |
Common Names and Latin Name | No. | Latitude and Longitude | OS National Grid | Elevation (above sea-level) |
Height | Girth | Date Measured | |
WGS84 | OSGB36 | |||||||
Giant Redwood, Wellingtonia Sequoiadendron giganteum pendula |
1 | N51.06759 W0.08805 |
N51.06703 W0.08646 |
TQ 34061 31545 | 1.26m | March 2006 | ||
Giant Redwood, Wellingtonia Sequoiadendron giganteum |
2 | N51.06708 W0.08821 |
N51.06652 W0.08662 |
TQ 34051 31488 | 445ft (135.6m) | 15.6m | March 2006 | |
3 | N51.06660 W0.08845 |
N51.06604 W0.08686 |
TQ 34036 31434 | 434ft (132.3m) | 10.5m | March 2006 | ||
4 | N51.06635 W0.08884 |
N51.06579 W0.08725 |
TQ 34009 31406 | 431ft (131.4m) | 12m | March 2006 | ||
5 | N51.06653 W0.08897 |
N51.06597 W0.08738 |
TQ 33999 31425 | 405ft (123.4m) | 37m | 6.16m | March 2006 | |
6 | N51.06664 W0.08890 |
N51.06608 W0.08731 |
TQ 34004 31438 | 404ft (123.1m) | 31.5m | 6m | March 2006 | |
7 | N51.06674 W0.08886 |
N51.06618 W0.08727 |
TQ 34007 31449 | 418ft (127.4m) | 24.9m | March 2006 | ||
8 | N51.06610 W0.08896 |
N51.06554 W0.08737 |
TQ 34001 31378 | 402ft (122.5m) | 28.8m | 5.9m | March 2006 | |
Coast Redwood Sequoia sempervirens |
9 | N51.06638 W0.09289 |
N51.06582 W0.09130 |
TQ 33725 31401 | 385ft (117.3m) | 15.6m | March 2006 | |
Giant Redwood, Wellingtonia Sequoiadendron giganteum |
10 | N51.06637 W0.09316 |
N51.06581 W0.09157 |
TQ 33706 31400 | 373ft (113.7m) | 11.2m | March 2006 | |
11 | N51.06573 W0.09278 |
N51.06517 W0.09119 |
TQ 33735 31329 | 349ft (106.4m) | 32.5m | 4.68m | March 2006 | |
12 | N51.06554 W0.09268 |
N51.06498 W0.09109 |
TQ 33743 31309 | 365ft (111.3m) | 35m | 4.66m | March 2006 | |
13 | N51.06484 W0.09173 |
N51.06428 W0.09014 |
TQ 33811 31232 | 389ft (118.5m) | 28.9m | 5.66m | March 2006 | |
Dawn Redwood Metasequoia glyptostroboides |
14 | N51.06305 W0.09040 |
N51.06249 W0.08881 |
TQ 33909 31036 | 405ft (123.4m) | 10.75m | 0.95m | March 2006 |
15 | N51.06313 W0.09030 |
N51.06257 W0.08871 |
TQ 33916 31045 | 419ft (127.7m) | 11.8m | 1.17m | March 2006 | |
Coast Redwood Sequoia sempervirens |
16 | N51.06838 W0.09848 |
N51.06782 W0.09689 |
TQ 33328 31614 | 260ft (79.2m) | 40.4m | 4.86m | March 2006 |
Giant Redwood, Wellingtonia Sequoiadendron giganteum |
17 | N51.06850 W0.09846 |
N51.06794 W0.09687 |
TQ 33329 31627 | 247ft (75.3m) | 11.2m | March 2006 | |
18 | N51.06836 W0.09780 |
N51.06780 W0.09621 |
TQ 33376 31613 | 261ft (79.5m) | 37.5m | 5.444m | March 2006 | |
19 | N51.06937 W0.09600 |
N51.06881 W0.09441 |
TQ 33499 31728 | 248ft (75.6m) | 46.5m | 4.84m | March 2006 | |
20 | N51.06943 W0.09596 |
N51.06887 W0.09437 |
TQ 33502 31735 | 246ft (75m) | 39.1m | 6.32m | March 2006 | |
21 | N51.06959 W0.09559 |
N51.06903 W0.09400 |
TQ 33527 31754 | 250ft (76.2m) | 0.82m | March 2006 | ||
22 | N51.06954 W0.09555 |
N51.06898 W0.09396 |
TQ 33530 31748 | 241ft (73.5m) | 0.96m | March 2006 | ||
Girth was measured at 1.5m from ground. | ||||||||
The order is roughly the sequence they would be encountered travelling clockwise around the gardens. This list does not yet include all of the Giant Redwoods in the Horsebridge Woods section. |