Braintree Wildlife Advisory Group has launched the Braintree District Veteran Tree Hunt Competition.

The competition will run until the 8th November 2008 and is to find the tallest or widest tree in the District.

The competition is a great way for you to get out into the countryside and hunt down veteran trees but also allows us to make a record of all the veteran trees in the District. this information will feed in to the Woodland Trusts national survey to find ancient or veteran trees all over the Country.

If you would like to get involved and take part in our competition, simply print off the Veteran Tree Hunt Leaflet below, fill in the back and send it to Landscape Services, Braintree District Council.

Remember to put your name and number on the form so that we can contact you if you win our competition.

- Braintree WAG Veteran Tree Hunt Leaflet

What is a Veteran Tree?

A Veteran is said to be "a tree which because of its great age, size or condition is of exceptional value culturally, in the landscaoe or for Wildlife".

Veterans do not neccesarily need to be huge in size or particularly old, although they often are, but a Veteran is measured by the number of species and wildlife it supports.

Veterans may be old Coppice which is where a tree is cut to the ground and left to grow back creating many stems out of just one tree, or Pollard, they may be found in gardens, roadside verges, on riverbanks, in Church yards or in a hedgerow. A Veteran Tree could be found almost anywhere.

How to measure your Veteran Tree?

Measuring the Girth (Width) of a tree

You will need:

- A tape measure

- A camera (if possible)

- A stick 1.5 metres long

- A notepad and pencil

- Some friends or family to help

The girth should be measured 1.5 metres from the ground.

Place your stick against the tree. wrap the tape measure around the tree at the height of the stick (this is where your friends come in handy) and write down the width measured. it is best to repeat this a couple of times to make sure your measurement is accurate.

Alternately you can get your friends and family to stand around the tree with their arms streched out and count how many hugs it takes to surround the tree.

Measuring the Height of a tree

There are many ways to measure the height of a tree but the easiest way to estimate the height is explained below.

You will need:

- A tape measure

- A camera (if possible)

- A notepad and pencil

- A friend or family member to help

Stand with your back to the tree. bend over so that you can see the tree through your legs. Carefully walk forwards (away from the tree) until you can see the top of the tree through your legs.

Measure the distance from where you are standing to the base of the tree.

If you have a camera, take a picture of your tree and send it in with your results. This will help us identify your tree in the future.