A 500-year-old oak tree in South Belfast’s Belvoir Park has been selected as a finalist in this year’s 2023 UK Tree of the Year awards.
The ancient tree – whose trunk is over eight metres in width – has fragmented over the years leading to it’s unique appearance, which has made determining its age accurately is impossible.
But in records from over a century ago the tree was noted as being over 300 years old leading to some proclaiming it to be the oldest surviving tree today in the North.
The wizened old oak has witnessed the growth of the city from a small settlement, to industrial powerhouse to the modern city it is today.
TREE: The oak has witnessed the growth of Belfast over 500 years
The oak is among 12 finalists across the UK which have been selected and is the only one selected from the North. This year’s finalists were selected for being ancient trees in urban environments with the qualification being that they had to all be in areas which are to the public and free.
The winning tree will be announced in October.
