Vote for Greenwich Park’s shortlisted ‘Tree of the Year 2023

A 360-year-old sweet chestnut tree has been shortlisted for the Woodland Trust’s Tree of the Year competition for 2023.

The Royal Parks charity, which manages London’s eight historic Royal Parks, is calling on London’s tree lovers to vote for it to win.

The shortlist was handpicked by the Woodland Trust’s expert panel, along with one People's Choice tree chosen from public nominations on social media.

This fantastic, twisted sweet chestnut was originally planted at the request of King Charles II. After taking the throne in 1660, he announced a bold vision for Greenwich Park, known as 'The Grand Plan' and while the Palace of Greenwich was never rebuilt as intended, the ambitious redesign of the grounds can still be enjoyed today.

Hundreds of trees were planted in formal avenues to mimic the French style King Charles II so admired and many of them are still standing such as this sweet chestnut.

Today, the contorted, decomposing trunk offers an important habitat for wildlife, including invertebrates and fungi that need decaying wood to survive.

Recently, our volunteers took part in a project to help maintain the soil biome of these trees – in other words, helping maintain all the beneficial organisms that live in the soil. They spread a heap of woodchip (180m3 of it!) around the sweet chestnut avenue near the Roman Temple - including around some of the park’s oldest trees.

The woodchips are being used as ‘mulch’ – material used to help aerate the soil, alleviating compaction and attracting burrowing earthworms. As the chips compost down, they nourish the tree and help hold moisture during hot, dry weather protecting it for the future.

The Royal Parks have a specialist arboriculturist team responsible for all the trees in the park, can regularly carry out surveys to monitor their health. There are nearly 3,000 trees in Greenwich Park. The majority are in the 50- to 100-year-old age range. 52 sweet chestnuts, eight oaks, one sycamore and a cedar make up the ancient and veteran tree stock in Greenwich Park.

The winner will be chosen by a public vote which closes on 15 October. The winner will be announced on the 19 October.

Vote here: Tree of the Year - Woodland Trust

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The trees of the Royal Parks

As the biggest plants on the planet, the trees in the Royal Parks give us oxygen, store carbon, stabilise the soil and give life to London’s wildlife.

Nature & wildlife | Trees