ragnhildur

The Tree of the Year 2001 was not nominated for its great size or stature, but rather for its role in the history of cultivation and forestry in Iceland. The tree is a tea-leaved willow in the garden of the farm Tröllatunga in Strandasýsla. Tea-leaved willow grows all over Iceland and is quite varied – in some places its procumbent, in other places it can reach 6 m height. The most commonly grown cultivar of the Icelandic tea-leaved willow is called ‘strandavíðir’ after the area Strandir or Strandasýsla. The willow at Tröllatunga is quite large and unusual, as the area has hardly any forests. Two willows were planted there in the early part of the 20^th century, from saplings gathered in the valley of Selárdalur. Offshots from that willow were later planted at the farm Miðhús and from there saplings were taken for cultivation at a tree nursery in Mosfellsbær and sold there. In 1982 foresters from the Iceland Forest Service went to Tröllatunga to get saplings for further cultivation, initially at one of their nurseries but later at several others – this has sometimes been referred to as ‘Tröllatunguvíðir’. In other words, the majority of tea-leaved willow cultivated in Iceland hails from the two willows initially taken as tiny saplings in Selárdalur.

Location on Google Maps: https://goo.gl/maps/9mUPr51xY3x1V2dEA

An article (in Icelandic) from Skógræktarritið – The Journal of the Icelandic Forestry Association about the tree (here).

The Tree of the Year 2000 is a sycamore standing the garden of the house Sólheimar in Bíldudalur. In 2000 the tree was measured at 9,6 m height, with a circumference at 1 m height of 197 cm.  Above 1 m the tree trunk splits into a main trunk and a large side branch. In the year 2000 the tree also developed seeds for the first time, that a closer examination showed to be fully formed, so seeds were gathered from the tree and given to a local gardener for cultivation. The tree is beautifully shaped, especially considering that the Westfjords, where Bíldudalur is located, are not known as the best growing sites in Iceland. Bíldudalur, however, is more sheltered than many of the other fjords in the area, with temperatures in the town reaching 20°C in summer. The tree is also located south of the house and thus sheltered from cold northerly winds. Sycamores are not common in Iceland, with most of them found in older areas of Reykjavík, planted around the 1930’s. The sycamore at Sólheimar was planted in 1930, along with rowan and laburnum trees, now gone. Most likely the plants came via ship from Reykjavík. How well the sycamore in Bíldudalur is growing is a positive indication for greater use of sycamore in forestry in Iceland.

Location of the tree on Google Maps: https://goo.gl/maps/ACPh8g6R73iPmPtv6

An article (in Icelandic) from Skógræktarritið – The Journal of the Icelandic Forestry Association about the tree (here).

The wych elm standing in front of the house at Túngata 6 is one of the treasures of Reykjavík. Its expansive crown has grown without constraints from nearby buildings or other trees. Its trunk splits into two at about 1 m height. A measurement in 1948 put its height at 7,15 m, in 1965 its 9 m and is then the tallest elm in the city, but in 1999 it measured at 10,7 m and had lost its first place standing in height to a nearby elm. Its circumference at the split at 1 m height was 2,45 m in 1999. Its age is disputed, with claims made both for it being planted sometime between 1890-1895 and in 1902. Information from descendants of previous owners of the house at Túngata 6 indicates that the tree was probably planted sometime after 1908, with assistance from Agner F. Kofoed-Hansen, the first head of forestry in Iceland, who lived nearby. The tree would have come from a tree nursery run by Einar Helgason, but many of the oldest trees in Reykjavík came from there.

Location of the tree on Google Maps: https://goo.gl/maps/v9m4QXR3KFgj6Tmi7

An article (in Icelandic) from Skógræktarritið – The Journal of the Icelandic Forestry Association about the tree (here).

The Tree of the Year 1998 stands in a garden at Sniðgata in Akureyri and is a birch tree, with branches drooping from a large crown. No reliable information has been found on its origins, but information from previous owners of the house has indicated it came from a plant nursery at Hallormsstaður around 1920. The tree seems, despite it shape to be a downy birch (Betula pubescens) rather than silver birch (Betula verrucosa var. pendula). Birch trees of a similar drooping shape can be found in other gardens in the area, indicating that someone has purposefully cultivated trees with this shape in the early part of the 20^th century.

Location of the tree on Google Maps: https://goo.gl/maps/JwBBuNWYC2YKqQA39

An article (in Icelandic) from Skógræktarritið – The Journal of the Icelandic Forestry Association about the tree (here).

The first tree nursery at Akureyri was founded at the turn of the 20^th century. The first supervisor of the nursery lived at Aðalstræti 52 and cultivated his garden there. A photo taken in 1912 shows a few larch trees in the garden, about 2 m in height. Nothing is known about their origins, but they are most likely Russian larch, probably of a southerly cultivar because it usually doesn’t finish shedding its needles until November and buds about ten days earlier than most of the Russian larch used in forestry in Iceland. The trees have suffered some frost damage early on and formed a large crown. The tallest trees in the garden were around 16 m at the time of the nomination, with the largest having a diameter of 190 cm at chest height.

Location of the trees on Google Maps: https://goo.gl/maps/W64sFVkJTSLE3jJ37

An article (in Icelandic) from Skógræktarritið – The Journal of the Icelandic Forestry Association about the trees (here). 

The larch is in the Skrúður garden, that has a notable history as one of the first ornamental gardens in the country. The date of planting is not known exactly but based on notes regarding the garden it was most likely planted between 1908 and 1910, derived from seed sown in Akureyri between 1900 and 1905. Growing conditions at that time were quite difficult, especially during winter storms. The fact that the larch tree survived can be put down to the care of Sigtryggur Guðlaugsson, the founder of the garden, who took great care to shelter the trees during winter. At some point in the trees early years some goats also escaped into the garden and ate the top of the tree. A lower branch emerged as a new top, leading to a noticeable twist in the trunk of the tree. The tree has been regularly measured. In 1966 its height was measured at 8 m, in 1985 it had reached 9,55 m height and in 1995 10,55 m, with a circumference of 2 m at 1 m height.

Location of the tree on Google Maps: https://goo.gl/maps/oDCLZy8zNqxEiQiLA

An article (in Icelandic) from Skógræktarritið – The Journal of the Icelandic Forestry Association about the tree (here).

The rowan tree stands close to the shop at Ferstikla, right by the Hvalfjarðarvegur road and is easily visible from the road. The tree was planted in 1945, along with six other rowans. The trees initially thrived but after being sprayed accidentally with a cooling liquid from a fire prevention system six of the trees died and the one remaining tree suffered serious frost damage. The remaining tree recovered, however, and has since grown and thrived. The farmer at Ferstikla has looked after the tree, giving it fertilizer now and then and guarded it against any plans to cut it down. Now the tree lends beauty to the spot.

Location of the tree on Google Maps https://goo.gl/maps/F6LkFL9pza5ZcpQV8

An article (in Icelandic) from Skógræktarritið – The Journal of the Icelandic Forestry Association about the tree (here). 

The sycamore at Suðurgata was planted by the merchant Nicolaj Bjarnason and his family in 1918. The tree stands at over 10 m tall, with a large and even canopy. It has often borne ripe seeds and thus has descendants all over the country. Sycamore grows quite well in Iceland, although it is relatively slow growing and needs fertile soils and care in its youth. In its original habitats it can reach a height of 20-25 m and an age of at least 500 years, so the sycamore at Suðurgata still has a long life ahead of it.

Location of the tree on Google Maps: https://goo.gl/maps/DMSSYtHQf8Kz7wHs6

An article (in Icelandic) from Skógræktarritið – The Journal of the Icelandic Forestry Association about the tree (here).

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