In 1970 Swansea Council gardeners planted 200 Scots pine saplings in 11 areas of the #Kilvey Hill copper tips.The areas were heavily toxic, but Scots p.were thought to have a good chance of survival as they were traditionally planted on Welsh coal waste.The saplings were probably raised in the 'Gasworks Nursery' in #Morriston being the main tree nursery for the #LowerSwanseaValleyProject of the 1960s. This is one of about fifty surviving Gasworks Pines on the Hill today. #EnvironmentalHistory

As an #AncientTreeSurveyor, I'm lucky to get to spend a lot of time with ancient trees in and around Swansea and the Valleys. Some of the most interesting trees are the ones that show growth and recovery on the land blighted by the #WelshIndustrial Revolution. Some of these 'recovery' trees are far from ancient but have achieved incredible growth from very uncertain beginnings. This is a Monterey Pine on #Kilvey in Swansea, planted in 1970 on copper waste tips. Now the biggest tree on the Hill!