London's best trees

Did you know that London is officially a forest? As our capital is 20 per cent covered by trees — it is, in fact, the largest urban forest in the world. As part of London Tree Week, RE: LEAF, a partnership campaign led by the Mayor to protect the city’s trees and encourage Londoners to plant more, is putting on a range of leafy events, including an exhibition and tree trails

P33 Trees Berkley Square London

Rex Features

13 May 2013

The Westminster Indian Bean trees

Peering through the railings beneath Big Ben you can see six old trees with contorted trunks and bean-like pods under big leaves. These unusual North American trees date from 1857. In summer they have large white flowers.

The Berkeley Plane

Berkeley Square, Mayfair is an appropriate home for Britain’s most expensive tree, worth £750,000. Planted in 1789 by a local resident it has a circumference of 1.8m and has unusual bark that flakes off, shedding pollutants. This helps it survive in grimy London.

Barney, Barnes

This huge London Plane known as Barney has a girth of 8.2m making it one of the largest in the city. It dates to the 1660s when the Oriental and American Planes cross-pollinated and the London Plane first came into existence.

The Totteridge Yew

In Totteridge Lane, this is the oldest living thing in London. It’s around 2,000 years old and the branches are loaded with berries that are sweet and safe to eat. Just don’t swallow the poisonous pips.