What is the oldest tree in Apeldoorn?
The oldest tree in Apeldoorn is a pedunculate oak standing by the statue of Frederick Henry at Paleis Het Loo. The national register gives it a planting band of 1600 to 1700 and adds its own reasoning: it was probably put in at the same time as the oaks of the Koningslaan in front of the palace, which would date it to shortly after the palace was built, between 1685 and 1690. That would make it about 340 years old. A Dutch lime at Het Woldhuis, east of the town, carries the same 1600 to 1700 band with no such reasoning attached. Neither has been cored, so the oak is the oldest by the register's own dating and the lime is its equal on paper.
Ages here come from the Landelijk Register Monumentale Bomen, which records a planting decade rather than a year, so every age on this page is a band and none is narrowed to look precise. Where the register offers reasoning of its own, as it does for the Het Loo oak and for the Ugchelen lime, the page repeats the reasoning rather than only the number, so you can judge it yourself. The register is the 2024 edition and is the single source for most of these trees, which is why they are flagged: it is an official survey and a good one, but one source is one source. The Ugchelen lime is the exception and carries a measured girth. Access is worth reading before you go, because five of these eight stand inside Paleis Het Loo, which is not free. If you find one of these gone, tell us and we will take it down the same day.
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