Kenn Yew

The Kenn yew has its own notice board, and the Ancient Yew Group knows of few yews that do. The board calls it among the oldest in England. The tree has the waist to make the case. Tim Hills measured 10.56 metres round at ground level in 1999, and Wondermondo gives 10.06 metres at half a metre up in 2017. How old that makes it is where the sources part. The church says the Conservation Foundation certified it as over 1,000 years old, and that the yew expert Allen Meredith thinks it nearer 2,000. Neither figure rests on a dating, so we give the range they span and no more. Its paper trail starts in 1840, when Oliver first mentioned it, Swete's journal of 1857 put it at 27 feet, and another record gives 35. The church of St Andrew dates from the 12th century and replaced a Saxon building, and the Group suggests the site may be older than Christianity here. The yew is huge and hollow, and it has been watched for a long time. Kenn is a village about 9 kilometres south-west of Exeter city centre by road, not a stroll from town. Check for a bus before you set out, or come by car or bike.