How the Sycamore Gap Tree Can Grow Again: Scientists claim they have the technology to grow an identical replica of the tree cut down on Hadrian’s Wall
When the Sycamore Gap Tree fell on September 28, hundreds of years of British history fell with it.
In a single deliberate act, a landmark that has seen two world wars, seven monarchs and over 40 changes of prime minister was unthinkingly destroyed.
But it may not be lost forever, as scientists believe the historic tree may live on as a genetically identical clone.
Through a technique called clonal propagation, it may be possible to preserve the Sycamore Gap Tree, allowing it to live into the distant future.
Additionally, similar techniques have already been used to save culturally important trees in the past, including Isaac Newton’s famous apple tree.
Through a technique called clonal propagation, it may be possible to preserve the Sycamore Gap Tree, allowing it to live into the distant future.
On September 28, locals were shocked to discover that the iconic monument had been cut down overnight in what appeared to be a deliberate act of vandalism.
Can the Sycamore Gap Tree be Saved?
The simplest way the Sycamore Gap Tree can live is if it grows on its own.
While the tree may be down, it is far from out and the trunk is very much alive despite the disastrous appearance.
Jo Clark, Head of Research at non-profit organization The Future Trees Trust, told MailOnline: “Broadleaf trees such as fig, ash, oak, hazel, chestnut grow easily from a felled log, especially when they are young.”
When a tree is cut back to a trunk and survives, it can truncate, resulting in a number of thin trunks growing from the base rather than a single large trunk.
Mr Clark says it is ‘quite possible’ the Sycamore Gap Tree will be cut down, provided the regeneration is protected from the local deer population that might otherwise eat it.
However, even if the tree survives this way, it will never return to the same majestic form that inspired tourists and filmmakers.
Science can perhaps provide a better solution in the form of cloning through propagation or micropropagation.
Plants are surprisingly easy to clone since, unlike animals, they are able to completely regenerate from a few cells if the conditions are right.
As police search for the culprit, conservationists and scientists have turned their attention to what can be done to save the tree or allow it to live on in other ways.
Micropropagation takes thousands of small samples of a plant, referred to as explants, which are grown in a nutrient-rich medium and treated with hormones to promote root growth.
These small species can then develop into their own fully grown plants, each a perfect clone of the original.
Micropropagation is possible with a fig tree, Mr Clark explained, but the process is very expensive and the success rate can be quite low.
In the case of trees it is best to take a small cutting, called a scion, which can be grafted directly onto a new tree of the same species, known as a rootstock.
The cutting joins this ‘root’ and grows into a tree that is genetically identical to the tree from which it was originally taken.
As Alison Crook, curator of plant collections for the National Trust, explained, when a cutting is root grafted, the top of the tree will be genetically identical to the original plant, but the roots will remain genetically distinct throughout the life of the plant.
The National Trust has already collected seeds and cuttings from the tree which can be used directly to grow clones of the original, but there is no guarantee of success.
The process is relatively simple if the cutting can be done within 72 hours of cutting the tree while it is in its winter dormancy.
“It’s done quite easily for some things,” Ms Crook said.
“The difficulty depends on what plant you’re trying to do it with and what time of year you’re trying to do it.
“It wasn’t the perfect time of year to get the best material unfortunately, but this is one of the tools we’re using to try and generate new plants.”
Another technique the National Trust is already trying with the Sycamore Gap tree is called ‘budding’.
“We can’t do grafting at this time of year,” Ms Crook told MailOnline.
Instead, this technique takes a bud from a tree and inserts it into the stem of the scion.
‘You take a bud from the Gap Sycamore Tree, seal it and keep your fingers crossed. We are trying to save material from the tree in as many ways as possible,” added Ms Crook.
The most famous cloned tree in British history is actually Isaac Newton’s famous apple tree. The current tree at Woolsthorpe Manor is actually itself a clone of the original tree which fell down sometime around 1820
READ MORE: The ‘famous Newton’s apple tree’ at Cambridge University’s botanic garden has been toppled by Storm Eunice – but luckily scientists cloned two more!
When were trees cloned before?
The most famous cloned tree in British history is Sir Isaac Newton’s famous apple tree.
Probably planted in 1650, this rare Flower of Kent apple tree grew in the garden of the Newton family home at Woolsthorpe Manor.
In a story that is almost certainly untrue but extremely famous, it was under this apple tree that Newton was first inspired to develop his theory of gravity when he was hit on the head by a falling apple.
Unfortunately, this apple tree fell sometime around 1814, surviving for several more years until it was finally blown down by a storm around 1820.
However, as luck would have it, the tree had been cut down by the house’s subsequent occupants, and live wood from the fallen tree successfully spread to nearby Belton Park.
The footage was taken from the East Malling Fruit Research Station in the 1930s and from there, clones of the famous Newton apple tree have spread all over the world.
There are currently clones of this tree on every continent except Antarctica, and the tree’s buds have even been sent into space, living on the International Space Station in 2014-15.
In a story that is almost certainly untrue but extremely famous, it was under this apple tree that Newton was first inspired to develop his theory of gravity when he was hit on the head by a falling apple.
Should we clone the Sycamore Gap Tree?
Although cloning the Sycamore Gap Tree is certainly possible if action is taken quickly, experts say it may not be the best way to preserve the tree’s legacy.
Professor Samuel Brockington, curator of Cambridge University Botanic Gardens and Professor of Evolution, told MailOnline that while an experienced grafter could certainly produce a genetically identical tree, he was not sure this would be best.
The loss of the tree at Sycamore Gap was a brutal and unnecessary loss. It is an opportunity to reflect on our society’s relationship with nature and to take renewed steps to engage in the protection of our natural heritage,’ says Professor Brockington.
But on the other side of the coin. It is an opportunity to reflect on our relationship with transience. All living things die, including beautiful trees.
“This tree was taken before its time, but at some point it would have been gone. Even a clonally propagated tree is unlikely to have the same shape, form and stature, as this is determined as much by its environment as by its genes.’
Professor Brockington says there are many other ways the tree could be commemorated, such as a plaque, a statue, or even a bench made from the wood of a fallen tree.
“There are many options,” he added. “But one thing is for sure – the offspring of this tree through seed have spread far and wide, and given the health and longevity of the tree at Sycamore Gap, I have no doubt that they are thriving.”