These super-sized spruce trees, some towering over 50ft, are hand selected by experts to make sure they look perfect from every angle. An experienced chainsaw operator carefully fells them to ensure they are kept in top condition before starting their journeys to festive displays around the country. Some of the other civic trees can be found on display at:
- Westminster Hall, London
- Speaker’s House, London
- Sheffield Town centre
- Piece Hall, Halifax
- Tottenham Court Road train station
- St Katherine’s Dock, London
- McArthurGlen designer outlets – Swindon, East Midlands and Ashford
- Chelmsford Town Centre
- Braintree Town Centre
- Various locations in South Lanarkshire
- Various locations in Inverclyde
Kielder Forest – the land of giant trees, wildlife, and sustainable timber
These trees come from Kielder Forest in Northumberland, which is England’s largest forest, covering over 63,000 hectares. This is one of the very few places in the UK that can supply these giant festive trees; thanks to Forestry England’s responsible management of the site. To ensure sustainability, seedlings from previously selected civic trees have been planted which, with some careful nurturing, could be on display in a town or city centre near you in 2050!
As well as supplying these Christmas trees, Kielder Forest is also England’s major producer of sustainable timber and a place for mountain bikers, walkers, explorers, star gazers, families, artists and nature lovers to enjoy. It is an internationally important habitat for wildlife, home to Ospreys, Water Voles, and Red Squirrels. Wildlife conservation is a core part of Forestry England’s work and they have recently launched their new Biodiversity Strategy, setting out their approach to protect and restore resilient biodiversity in the nation’s forests.
Find out more about how Forestry England manage forests sustainably to balance the benefits for people, timber and wildlife here.
Forest Management Certification
The Forestry Commission GB achieved FSC forest management certification in 1999; in 2019, it celebrated its centenary and 20 years of FSC certification. Its devolved national agencies, Forestry England, Forest and Land Scotland and Nature Resources Wales, continue to hold FSC forest management certification.