Fortingall Yew, Ancient yew tree in Fortingall, Scotland
Fortingall Yew is a yew tree in the churchyard of Fortingall, Perth and Kinross, Scotland. Multiple stems grow from the base, and the main trunk shows the typical reddish bark furrows and dense needle cover of old yew specimens.
Dating suggests an age of around 3,000 years, placing its origin in the Bronze Age. Christian missionaries later built the church at this site, likely because of the already sacred meaning of the location.
The name comes from the Gaelic designation for the location where the tree has grown for millennia and is regarded by inhabitants as a living witness to the past. Visitors today see the surrounding stone wall, built in the 19th century to protect the trunk from souvenir hunters.
The churchyard is freely accessible during the day, and a sign on site explains the features of the tree. The protective wall allows a clear view of the structure without endangering the root system.
In 2015, individual branches of the male specimen began to produce red berries, which represents a biological rarity. This change shows that very old yews apparently still possess the ability to partially switch their sex.
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