A castle in Herefordshire owned by the Hervey-Bathurst family has recently (April, 2016) received a tree donation from a leading commercial nursery in the county. Wyevale Nurseries in Hereford has given Eastnor Castle, which is located at the foot of the Malvern Hills, a rare native tree called the Whitty Pear or Sorb Tree also known as the ‘True Service Tree’, Sorbus domestica.

Stephen Ashworth, director at Wyevale Nurseries, said: “The donation was suggested by Hereford Botanical Society’s Chairman, Jean Wynne-Jones, and we were very happy to offer as Eastnor Castle’s Arboretum has one of the county’s outstanding tree collections and we were delighted to be able to help expand its collection.

“The tree donated is typically a native of southern Europe, but discovered in 1983 to be resident and native here in Britain. A remnant population of dwarfed, wizened trees hugs the steepest, remotest, cliffs at rare intervals along the coast of South Wales and even as close to our area as the rocky crags of the Wye and Severn estuaries.

“This particular tree is vegetatively propagated from the population at Porthkerry, near Cardiff, which I located together with the man who discovered the first ever recorded British tree of its kind, Marc Hampton. Raised and grown on at Wyevale Nurseries the tree will likely grow in cultivation like a Rowan (and resemble in leaf), but has large fruits rather like a crab apple or are occasionally pear-shaped. Surely this is the rarest British native tree and has laid low and unnoticed for so long.

“I was invited along to Eastnor Castle recently to help with the planting of the tree. Castle owner, James Hervey-Bathurst, used a spade freshly restored and famously last used by Queen Mary while visiting in 1937 to plant an English Oak in the grounds. The tree planted on that occasion still prospers there. This time the spade was used to plant what is surely Britain’s rarest native tree!”

Eastnor Castle is surrounded by a deer park, arboretum and lake. Besides being an award-winning visitor attraction, Eastnor Castle fulfils other roles as a wedding, corporate and private party venue, and for location filming. It is also a home to ‘Land Rover Experience’.

James Hervey-Bathurst, Eastnor Castle owner, said: “We much appreciate the generous gift of this rare specimen, which will be quite at home at Eastnor, even amongst the Cedars and Wellingtonias. It is a privilege to be playing a part in preserving this indigenous tree and good to use the historic spade to complete the planting.”

Most of Eastnor Castle’s exotic trees were planted in the second half of the 19th century, at the height of the Victorian passion for plant collecting. The 2nd and 3rd Earls Somers collected seeds on their travels. Many more plants came from botanical expeditions and from specialist nurseries where trees were raised from seed and imported from all over the world. Eastnor has the UK’s original Atlantic cedar, imported from the Atlas Mountains in Morocco.

Ron Layton, head gardener at Eastnor Castle, explained: “We are fortunate at Eastnor to be guided by Tom Stuart-Smith, a prize-winning exhibitor at the Chelsea Flower Show, and that James’s wife, Lucy, is passionate about the arboretum and its revival. We have been replanting with rare, exotic species, some provided by the Edinburgh Botanic Garden in Edinburgh, so it is very nice to have something rare from Wales too.”

Wyevale Nurseries is one of the largest family-run wholesale nurseries in the UK. It was established in 1930 by Harry Williamson, a horticulturist and entrepreneur. It became the company it is today under the leadership of his son, Peter, who passed away in 2011.

The Williamsons’ saw the opportunity to sell their product to an undeveloped retail market, creating one of the first garden centres, followed by a chain. In 1987, the retail side needed to expand, and the 19 garden centres were sold as a PLC.

The family then turned its focus to Wyevale Nurseries Ltd. It continues to be a family-run business with ownership and joint chairmanship currently being held by the third generation, Heather and Simeon Williamson, with plans for the fourth generation to takeover in the future.

Wyevale Nurseries has a significant product range and is regularly introducing new plants. It offers a large variety of trees, shrubs, hedging, herbaceous and specimen plants to garden centres, landscape contractors, local authorities, foresters and landowners.

For further details about Wyevale Nurseries, which is based in Hereford, please call 01432 845 200, visit www.wyevalenurseries.co.uk, follow the company on Twitter at www.twitter.com/WyevaleNurs or log on to www.facebook.com/WyevaleNurs.