The Facts
Tree Type: The Lady Oak is an example of an English Oak that has grown to extremely large size. Because it has never been pollarded (had its limbs cut off) it is called a 'maiden oak' - and because of its age the 'maiden' has become 'lady'. It loses its leaves in the winter, so is a deciduous tree.
Location: The oak family of trees are very widespread across Europe and the western parts of Russia.
Ecology: Although these maiden trees grow to a great age, many of the largest of them were cut down in previous centuries to build ships and rooves and other structures requiring long and sturdy beams. The trees which have survived are often local celebrities, and protected from being felled.
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The Legends
Landscape architects such as Capability Brown loved to plant oak trees in places where they could really grow and spread, although they would never get to see the mature trees in their own lifetimes.
The latin name of the tree is Quercus robur - the 'robur' meaning 'hard' or 'durable'
The age of the Lady Oak is not known, but is probably about 400 to 500 years. But it is not polite to ask a lady for her exact age!
Although huge, this is not the oldest oak in England. That title probably belongs to the Majesty Oak in Fredville Park in Kent. Another ancient oak is the Major Oak in the Sherwood Forest, which legend says was used by Robin Hood, and was voted 'Britain's Favourite Tree' in 2002.