TREE TRAIL Alex Here at the ‘Titans’ stop, we will pick out a selection of the champion trees that we have here. Sarah Keep an eye out for the various trees labels as you walk down the path. Anthony The bright red labels number the champion trees in our official ‘Tree Trail’. Sarah To the left you will see one of my favourite trees, the smooth Japanese Maple. The leaves turn from green to vivid orange and then red in autumn. Alex Half way down on the right-hand side of the path is number 9, the North American version of the Tulip Tree and a close relative of the Magnolia. You can see some fine specimens of the Chinese variant in the nearby gardens of Mount Usher. Anthony Just behind the tulip tree to the right is a magnificent specimen of an American lime. COAST REDWOOD AlexAt the bottom of the slope is Number 10, a Coast Redwood. The Californian coast has the tallest woodlands in the world. The groves can reach 110 metres in height.AlexThe world’s tallest tree is a 115 metre high Coast Redwood called Hyperion. Anthony Hyperion was an ancient Greek Titan - one of the four pillars that hold the heavens and the earth apart. Sarah Our young tree is a mere 36 metres high. Alex But it has taken less than 150 years to reach that height. Growing conditions here are perfect. This tree could live for a 1,000 years, or more. I like to think we could have a Titan of our own here one day. WINTER’S BARK Sarah now And we have many other champions here. Tree number 12 is the tallest known example of winter’s bark on the planet. Alex Winter’s Bark is named after Captain Winter, who brought this unusual species back from South America in 1578.Its peppery, hot-tasting leaves and bark can cure scurvy.