Seasons1 of 4
Its nickname is Mother of Millions. One photographer's caption credits this single larch with being the seed source for more than 14 million others. Nobody can check that number, but the principle is on record. Seed from this tree raised later plantings across the Atholl estates. It is the sole survivor of a group of European larches planted here in 1738 for the Duke of Atholl. One account says there were five seedlings, brought from the Tyrol through the Menzies of Culdares. The family became known as the Planting Dukes, and between 1738 and 1830 they put some 27 million conifers into the Perthshire hills. You will also read that these were the first larches in Britain. Wikipedia credits the 2nd Duke with the country's first European larch, but the claim is disputed, so we leave that crown unclaimed. The family line did not stop with the plantations. On the Kennel Bank next to it, larches grown from its seed stood alongside Japanese larches, and the two crossed to give the hybrid now known as the Dunkeld larch. The tree itself is a gnarled old larch with an unusual silhouette, standing behind Dunkeld Cathedral near the clock tower, and a visitor photographed it standing in May 2026. The cathedral grounds are free to walk into. The gates have been found open, but they may close after services, so arriving on foot is the safer plan.
From people who stood here
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Getting there
Behind Dunkeld Cathedral, Cathedral grounds / Dunkeld House estate edge, Dunkeld, Perth and Kinross
You can recognise it as the lone, gnarled old larch with an unusual silhouette. It stands in the grounds behind Dunkeld Cathedral, close to the clock tower above the Tay, a few metres from the thick, topless Dunkeld Douglas Fir.
Free to walk up to; stands in the grounds of Dunkeld Cathedral (Church of Scotland choir, ruined nave in Historic Environment Scotland care). A small car park lies inside the cathedral grounds; the Substack visitor found its gates open on a visit but suspected closure after services, so on foot is safer.
Dunkeld town centre is close by on foot; distance not measured by this pass. Dunkeld and Birnam railway station serves the village.
Autumn colour
late October into November, when the larch needles turn gold before they fall
The line is our estimate of how much there is to see, not a measurement. Typical for this species where this tree stands; exact weeks shift with the year.
Sources
Where the facts on this page come from. The story was written with AI from these sources, and readers who know the tree correct it.
