Holy Trinity Church has suffered the loss of three mature trees in 2022, opening up views of the church. The first was by Storm Eunice on 18 February when a chestnut on the south boundary was blown over and fell just short of the building.
On 7th April a strong gust of wing felled a sycamore tree on the east boundary, crushing a public bench on the Heath and revealing a rotten interior at the base that was not visible before. Over the next week it was cut up and the area made tidy. On Tuesday 25 October the Cedar of Lebanon that was close to the East Window was cut down following a tree surgeon’s inspection due to a fungal infection that was creating a rotten core. This time three large straw bales provided a soft landing for the trunk. I counted over 150 tree rings on the remaining stump so it is likely that the tree was planted at the Churchyard dedication on 4th August 1859 or soon after. It is hoped to be replaced with another cedar in a couple of years time, when the ground has recovered. At the same visit, the two Horse Chestnut trees by the Lychgate were pollarded, opening up the view of the church from the south for a few years. My thanks to Michael Hockley and Hillary Allen for the additional photos. Tree maintenance is an ongoing concern for churches. Recently the URC had to trim the pines in the graveyard to give clearance to the Church and in Little Hallingbury the mature tree in the graveyard on the main road boundary was felled, again opening up the view. Further afield, the Hardy tree in St. Pancras Old Church graveyard was toppled in the last week of December, having been planted in the 1860’s when the Midland Railway was being built through the graveyard. Quentin Spear
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