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Embargoed until 00:01 Wednesday 1 February 2017

‘Old Homer’heads for Europe
County Down oak represents Northern Ireland inEuropean competition
Aremarkable County Down oak,recently crownedNorthern Ireland’s best-loved tree,is now competing for votes in the European Tree of the Year contest.

The holm oak, a mighty evergreen oak in Rostrevor’s Kilbroney Park, secured the title of Northern Ireland’s Tree of the Yearin a competition organised by the Woodland Trust; and was unveiled in a Channel 4 documentary Tree of the Year with Ardal O’Hanlonlast December.

It now faces stiff competition from 15 other trees from as far away as Bulgaria. Run by the Environmental Partnership Association1, the European verdict is simple – the tree with the most public votes at the end of February will win.

The 200-year-oldoak, affectionately and locally known as ‘Old Homer’, was nominated by Alistair Livingstone on behalf of LIGHT 2000 community group.

Alistair said:“This tree has been well-loved by generations of locals and visitors who have gathered under its huge canopy for festivals and more. We’ve worked hard to put ‘Old Homer’ in the spotlight, and indeed we’re determined to encourage an appreciation of the many remarkable trees within this park. We really hope that members of the public will make their mark by way of a simple vote.”

Patrick Cregg, director of the Woodland Trust, added:“Centuries-old, this striking natural landmark reachesout to visitors at Kilbroney’s Fairy Glen entrance. And, while it distinctively leans at an angle, this oak is standing tall for all of Northern Ireland’s amazing, unsung trees.

“We’re appealing toeveryone – right across the country – to take a second to vote and give ‘Old Homer’ the backing hedeserves.”

Today, Kilbroney Park is owned by Newry, Mourne and Down District Council, and is freely open to all. It has, over the centuries, enjoyed its fair share of famous owners and visitors2. And, with breath-taking views overlooking Carlingford Lough, is said to have inspired CS Lewis’ magical land of Narnia. The Trust hopes that the Belfast-born writer “would have been proud” of his boyhood haunt’s recent achievement.

The Woodland Trust wants to see greater protection for our notable trees. More than 9,000 people throughout the UK have so far supported the charity’s V.I.Trees campaign, which calls for a register of Trees of National Special Interest.

To give the holm oak the European vote, head to Voting ends on 28 February.

Ends

Notes to editors:

For further information contact Kaye Coates at the Woodland Trust’s Bangor Office on 028 9127 5787 or

See the video of ‘Old Homer’ here: (The video is to the right of the photos).

1Environmental Partnership Association:is a consortium of six foundations from Bulgaria, Czech Republic, Hungary, Poland, Romania and Slovakia supporting community based projects whose goal is to protect the environment and support local communities and society.

European Tree of the Year contest, run by the Environmental Partnership Association since 2011, looks for ‘a tree with a story’ from countries across Europe. The 2016 winner was the Oldest Tree of Bátászék in Hungary.

2Snaphot of history of Kilbroney Park – owners and visitors

1700 – 1851: Ross family

The Ross family built the estate’s grand house, ‘the Lodge’, in 1716 in what has always (until recently) been called ‘the Meadow’. They planted most of the mature non-native trees that are in today’s park. Their famous son General RobertRoss, who led an army of 5000 men and sackedWashington and burned the WhiteHouse in 1814,was born in the Lodge.

1919 – 1978: The Bowes-Lyon Family

The estate was owned by the Bowes-Lyon family – second cousins of the late Queen Mother. It’s said that the Queen Mother along with the young Princesses Elizabeth and Margaret holidayed here/stayed at the Lodge in 1937.

CS Lewis was inspired to write The Chronicles of Narnia from his visits to Kilbroney Park (then known as the Meadow),the Oak Wood,Cloughmoreand Slieve Martin.

William Makepeace Thackeray, the famous English nineteenth century writer, writing about Carlingford Lough and Rostrevor said: "Were such a bay lying upon English shores, it would be a world's wonder; or if on the Mediterranean or Baltic, English travellers would flock to it".

The Woodland Trust is the largest woodland conservation charity in the UK. It has over 500,000 supporters.

The Trust has three key aims:

i)to protect ancient woodland, which is rare, unique and irreplaceable

ii)to restore damaged ancient woodland, bringing precious pieces of our natural history back to life

iii)to plant native trees and woods with the aim of creating resilient landscapes for people and wildlife.

Established in 1972, the Woodland Trust now has over 1,000 sites in its care covering over 22,500 hectares. Access to its woods is free. Further news can be found at

Here in Northern Ireland the Woodland Trust cares for 50 woods. These woods contain a mix of recently planted woodland, mature woodland and ancient woodland. The Trust has produced the first-ever comprehensive record of Northern Ireland’s ancient woodland; find out more at