Twists and Turns Traditional Cache
allieballie: Twisting the night away .....
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Difficulty:
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Terrain:
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Size: 
(micro)
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A quick visit to a strange Dundonian tree! Although this tree is small, its branches twist and turn and knot together to create a distinctive and weird natural feature!
The tree which you will see fenced in near to the above co-ordinates is the original Camperdown Elm, a mutant form of the wych elm, which was discovered growing wild in woodland in about 1865 by David Taylor, the Earl of Camperdowns head forester. Taylor was intrigued by its appearance and transplanted the tree to the grounds surrounding Camperdown House. Interest in this odd variety grew and this elm provided the early cuttings from which it was to be widely propagated.
Camperdown elms satisfied a mid-Victorian taste for curiosities and many examples were planted in parks, gardens and cemeteries throughout Britain and America. In Prospect Park, Brooklyn, a Camperdown Elm planted in 1872 has developed into a picturesque weatherbeaten specimen, no more than 13 feet high, like an oversized bonsai. It is considered to be the outstanding specimen tree in that park.
Cuttings need to be grafted onto a wych elm tree to get them started so Camperdown elms depend on humans to keep them alive as a species. However, they were effectively wiped out in Britain as a result of Dutch elm disease. Fortunately this original one has survived. As cultivars, Camperdown elms cannot self reproduce and so every Camperdown elm tree in the world can be traced back to the tree you see here today.
Park at N56 28.875 W003 02.415. This car park is situated between Camperdown Wildlife Centre and an excellent childrens adventure playground (well, wee man loves it, so I‘ll go along with his judgement!).
Original small cache has been replaced by a micro in a new position - please see log for January 1st 2006.
Additional Hints
(Decrypt)
Va fcnpr oruvaq arj fubbgf tebjvat bhg bs gur onfr bs n ynetr gerr. Abegurea fvqr.
Treasures
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