First saplings from felled Sycamore Gap tree are planted

The tree was deliberately cut down overnight in September 2023, prompting a national outcry and a police investigation.

The first saplings grown from the illegally felled Sycamore Gap tree have been planted as National Tree Week gets under way.

Five saplings went in the ground on Saturday, with more than half of the 49 “trees of hope” from the sycamore that stood for more than a century in a dip in Hadrian’s Wall expected to be planted over the course of the week.

The tree was deliberately cut down overnight in September 2023, prompting a national outcry and a police investigation.

Earlier this year, Daniel Graham and Adam Carruthers were found guilty over the illegal felling and were sentenced to more than four years in prison.

The saplings – which number 49 to mark the sycamore’s he