Sherborne's new Ancestor Oaks

A great effort from the team who turned out to plant our oak saplings on Saturday. These saplings are ones we have grown from acorns gathered from the oldest oaks in the village. In a sense, I like to think they inherit the village history and heritage. Thank you to those people who have given their permission to plant these trees.

Each one is being planted in the name of a village son lost in the world wars. Lest we forget.

Three were planted behind Sherborne House. Two up by Dawn Tremaine's house. Two at the crossroads opposite Mill Hill Farm. And we put six in an avenue up by Haycroft, alongside the public footpath. They look so good, we're going to put another three there in the coming days to complete an avenue of nine. There are one or two others dotted around the village, 17 in all. Each will have one of these brass labels attached to it. Lest we forget.

We'll be fastening these labels later in the year, I think.Perhaps associated with a village event. We'll then produce a poster showing the location, the name, and the history of each person's tree. Remember, these young men lived in your houses in the village. They grew up here and they went away and didn't return. Some left grieving parents, some left grieving wives and children. Lest we forget.

The plan is for these trees to grow for centuries. If they fail, we will replace them. We'll monitor them, we'll feed them, we'll throw some water on if needs be. And every time we pass, we'll be able to remember.

Here's one example, just one for now. This is the tree we planted at the village crossroads at a corner known traditionally as Coal House Corner. You can see the triangle and the road into the village running off in the distance. So this tree will become a guardian at the entrance to the village. This is being named in memory of John Houlton, a young man brought up on Mill Hill Farm who was murdered as a prisoner of war by the Japanese in 1942 on a remote island in the Pacific. It's a tragic tale. It makes me feel sick every time I think of it. His uncle, Charles Freeman, who died at Gallipoli in 1915 is remembered by another nearby sapling, 20 yards away.

I hopped into the Sherborne time machine this morning and set it to go forward. I went forward 250 years, and this is the image of John Houlton's tree in the future. His tree still stands guard.

Lest we forget. Tip your hat in acknowledgment as you pass, so he is remembered every day. This is village heritage, and I don't think there's much that is more important to us as a community.

More pics to follow in future posts. We have some spare oak saplings if you have room for one. What else can you do with a spade and 10 minutes of your time that will last for centuries? Sherborne has a history of planting trees, and oaks in particular. It's what Sherborne does. Century Wood is one example, planted in 1901 with the help of village schoolchildren. The trees are both a commitment to the future and a remembrance of the past. Deep into the soil of Sherborne.