SCHOOL pupils planting a Scots pine at Dawyck Botanic Garden to mark this year’s Royal Coronation agreed it was: “An honour to plant a tree for the King”.
The three youngsters from Broughton Primary – Ruby from P3, Angus P5 and Vincent P7 – were helped by Tweeddale Lord Lieutenant Sir Hew Strachan, Dawyck curator Graham Stewart and garden supervisor Thomas Gifford.
Sir Hew also noted that as last Thursday was St Andrew’s Day, planting a tree in the Scottish environment at one of the gardens of the Royal Botanic Garden of Edinburgh, was ideal.
Every Lord Lieutenancy will have a Coronation tree and Sir Hew said a Scot’s Pine was specially selected for Tweeddale as it was voted the national tree of Scotland in 2014.
Each pupil shovelled earth on to the roots of the eight-year-old young tree in a prepared hole, before Mr Gifford and Mr Stewart heeled it in firmly.
Bark mulch was added to the hole’s surface with the pupils again lending a hand.
Sir Hew said: “Each county has been asked to plant a Coronation tree and we were keen to get something which fits in at Dawyck.”
Mr Stewart added: “We have a great day for the planting and the snow makes it very picturesque.”
Mr Gifford gave a little instruction on tree planting.
He said the hole was tapered and that the first roots to go into the earth are from the top of the root ball.
After the planting ceremony, complete with a gold plaque marking the King’s Coronation on May 6, Mr Gifford led the children and classroom assistant Fiona Woollard to the garden’s new elevated viewing platform.
Mr Gifford told the pupils: “None of our trees are bought at garden centres, they are all wild collected so we know the history.
“In the future on our website you will be able to go into the database with the accession number of the tree.
“It will record who planted it and everything which happens to the tree in the future.
“Everything is also mapped via a Royal Botanic Garden of Edinburgh app.”
The Scots pine, Pinus sylvestris, is the only true native pine in the UK and can live for up to 700 years.
It is an important habitat for wildlife including wildcats, red squirrels, capercaillie, pine Martens and the pine hawk moth.
Clusters of Scots pines on old drove roads helped people stay on the right track in bad weather.
The tree’s timber can be used in construction and it can be tapped for resin to make turpentine.
Rope can be made from the inner bark, tar from the roots and a dye from its cones.
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