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Short Break with ‘Perthshire Giants’

with Gillian Hull

Our introduction to Perthshire nearly 50 years ago was a few weeks spent in the Tay Valley. I vividly remember the beauty of the trees, soaring upwards or spreading their limbs gracefully over green hillsides. Many stood alone allowing one to admire their shape and symmetry.

We drove to Glen Lyon and were spellbound by its narrow entrance beckoning us onwards through woodland in full autumn colours, intensified by the late sunshine.

Since living in Scotland we have learnt a little about the area’s trees; many were 19th century introductions when it was discovered that Perthshire shared ideal conditions with the Pacific coast of North America, the provenance of many of our county’s giants. I never tire of Perthshire’s arboreal delights, and seeking out individual specimens makes an intriguing  short break.

The remaining sections of a former giant which in Thomas Pennant’s time had a base of 56 feet still survive behind railings. The interpretive path to the Fortingall yew sets in context the 5,000 years of this remarkable veteran’s history. It may well be the oldest living thing in Europe.

The Scots pine, another of our three native conifers, (the juniper is the third) has a characteristic bark formed of irregular plates, which becomes reddish towards the top.  Some giants of the species are in the Black Wood of Rannoch, remnant of the ancient Caledonian Forest. Take one of the paths into the main part of the wood, and you will discover splendid examples.

Growing beside the Tay near Birnam are two of our most venerable giants, the medieval oak, a remnant of the native oakwood mentioned by Shakespeare in ‘Macbeth’, and a hugely impressive old sycamore (the species was introduced from France in the Middle Ages).

Just north of Dunkeld on the south bank of the Tay is the Niel Gow oak, where the well-known fiddler reputedly composed many of his famous melodies. There is a delightful seat beneath it, an ideal stopping place for those walking beside the river.

Close to Dunkeld Cathedral is the Parent larch, a fine veteran which grew from one of five seeds from the Tyrol given to the Duke of Atholl in 1738 by ‘Mr Menzies of Megeny’. By 1830 the Dukes of Atholl had planted 14 million larches on the hills around Dunkeld. What  a transformation of a landscape!

In 1790 Archibald Menzies was appointed surgeon/naturalist on HMS Discovery, captained by George Vancouver. During time spent off North America’s Pacific coast, Menzies discovered and identified a huge number of plants, but lost nearly all his live specimens on the journey home. David Douglas, who went to the same area over thirty years later,  introduced many of them to Britain. The Douglas fir’s scientific name (Pseudotsuga menziesii) honours Menzies who first discovered it. There are many examples in the Hermitage, one a former contender for the title of tallest tree;  it nevertheless reaches 212 feet. Travelling south by train look out for a long line of Douglas firs in the grounds of Murthly Castle. Diana’s Grove at Blair Castle boasts some immensely tall conifers, including seventeen Grand firs, Noble and Douglas firs with many trees over 150 feet. All these species were introduced by Douglas;  Scone Palace boasts a tree grown from seed he sent back from America in 1827. In the Pinetum, started by the Earl of Mansfield in 1848, are stately Sitka spruce, a species Douglas found at the mouth of the Columbia River. What a pity it is generally known as blanket planting on our hillsides!

Cluny Garden boasts a massive giant sequoia, beloved by roosting treecreepers who leave tell-tale white splodges on its spongy bark. The sequoia loves the Scottish climate, and it towers above surrounding trees. It has the largest girth of any tree in Scotland, at over 36 feet. Further west in the grounds of Castle Menzies is a madrona, (Arbutus menziesii), an evergreen species discovered on the Olympic Peninsula by Menzies in 1792. With its wonderful cinnamon-coloured, polished bark and bell-like white flowers, this specimen was planted by Sir Robert Menzies in 1870.

Soaring Coast redwoods (the world’s tallest species), also discovered by Menzies, can be found near Kenmore. On the north side of the bridge take a footpath westwards by the loch.

More modest native species which reach considerable antiquity include an ash in Glen Lyon which can be found 10 miles from Fortingall quite close to the road. Though heavily pollarded with its height considerably reduced, it is one of the oldest of its species in Scotland and has a girth of 21 feet.

On the south side of Loch Tummel towards the west end is an ancient crab beside the road, its battered trunk evidence of a remarkable struggle for survival.  

Perthshire’s arboreal giants come in all shapes and sizes. Seeking them out gives an aim to a walk, and the chance to explore in greater depth our hugely varied and beautiful county.