The Tree of the Year 2022 goes to Galicia

The seventh edition of the Spanish Tree of the Year has gone to the Carballo del Bosque del Banquete de Conxo, near Santiago de Compostela, Galicia.

The tree polled 22,974 votes pushing a tree in Sabina de Blancas (Teruel)into second place and third place a tree in the Drago Milenario de Icod (Tenerife).

A 250-year-old oak, the winning tree is an imposing 30 metres tall and has a girth of four metres. It is said to be the oldest tree in the historic Banquete Forest of Conxo, standing at the foot of a “new” natural area located south of Santiago de Compostela.

The forest hasn’t been accessible to the public for more than 130 years, and was only recently re-opened to walkers, hikers and nature lovers.

A host of activities will be carried out around the tree during 2022, which will be used not only to promote tourism but also nature and biodiversity. The tree, which hasn’t been named, was also entered into the European Tree of the Year competition but sadly came second to an Oak from Poland

The Dunin Oak polled 179,317 votes, with the Carballo del Bosque del Banquete de Conxo Oak polling 168.284.

The Mayor of Santiago de Compostela Xosé Sánchez Bugallo, referring to news that the winning Spanish tree came second in the European competition, he reiterated his commitment to plant 100,000 native trees throughout the town.

The Tree of the Year competition in Spain is an initiative of the NGO Bosques sin Fronteras, with the collaboration of the Ministry for the Ecological Transition and the Demographic Challenge, the Feu Vert Foundation and FSC Spain.

Started in what was then the Czech Republic, the competition is now Europe wide. According to their website the “objective of the European Tree of the Year is to highlight interesting old trees as an important natural and cultural heritage that we should appreciate and protect. In the European Tree of the Year, unlike other contests, beauty, size or age are not important, but history and connection with people. We look for trees that have become an integral part of the community in its broadest sense.”

In total 11 trees were entered into the competition for the tree of the year, each picked for its beauty, its unquestionable monumental and historical value.

Voting is open to the public, with votes cast exclusively online through the website https://arboleuropeo.es/

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