A PRECIOUS example of a rare species of tree once grazed upon by dinosaurs has taken pride of place in an historic East Cornwall estate garden, following a donation by a Tavistock woman. The wollemia nobilis, dubbed a ?pinosaur?, was thought to have become extinct millions of years ago ? until former Tavistock resident turned Australian wildlife ranger David Noble stumbled upon a grove of the trees in a remote rainforest gorge in the Blue Mountains in New South Wales eight years ago. The Wollemi pines had survived 17 ice ages and were the last remnants of a forest which covered the ancient continent of Gondwanaland. Their location is now a closely guarded secret in order to conserve and protect the trees, but saplings have been grown from the last remaining 100 specimens. Last week, Tavistock?s Joan Eberlie, David Noble?s aunt, presented the head gardener at Cotehele, David Bouch, with one of the precious saplings. It will be planted in the estate?s medieval gardens next spring, in memory of her late mother, Helen Noble. Joan, a volunteer room steward at Cotehele, said: ?I am delighted to give a Wollemi Pine to the National Trust at Cotehele, as it is such a wonderful place. ?My nephew rediscovered the plant whilst out on a bush walk with colleagues. They were exploring a particular part of the park and while he was abseiling over a cliff, he noticed the tree but couldn?t identify it ? the rest is history.? Joan?s mother Helen was brought up in Tavistock and lived at St John?s House, where her uncle, John Quick, the librarian of the town?s subscription library, himself had a keen interest in horticulture and grew orchids. David Noble lived at the house as a young boy, until the family emigrated to Australia in the 1960s. David Bouch, of Cotehele, said: ?We feel very privileged to be the first Trust garden in England to receive a Wollemi Pine and one of only a handful of gardens in the UK. ?It is also very exciting, as this is one of the oldest and rarest plants to exist in the world. It?s really hard to imagine that it was around at the time of the dinosaurs.? Mr Bouch said the pine preferred a reasonably warm environment ? the sapling will be kept in the greenhouses at Cotehele during the winter and planted outdoors next year. LEFT: Joan Eberlie and Cotehele?s David Boudh with the rare pine.
