48. Glasnevin Tree of Heaven

‘Heavenly’ is an apt adjective for one of the finest trees at the National Botanic Gardens in Dublin.

It requires a particularly fine tree to occupy what might be regarded as the preeminent vista at Ireland’s National Botanic Gardens. The Glasnevin Tree of Heaven does this effortlessly, drawing attention to the twin glass buildings of the Palm House and the Curvilinear Range, whilst also holding its own as a third monument in an iconic landscape. It is one of the most shapely trees of its species in Ireland or Britain.

Species details

Tree of heaven
Ailanthus altissima

Where to find it

National Botanic Gardens, Botanic Road, Dublin 9, D09 YV29
///tower.pounds.crop | 53.372561, -6.270766

Tree of heaven notes

Trees of heaven have many features of note. They are very attractive, they have one of the largest leaves of any tree that flourishes in these islands, and they can grow at a considerable rate, especially in their first few years. They live fast but they die young: a tree in its seventies is an elderly example of this species. 

In parts of southern England, particularly London, trees of heaven are becoming invasive, popping up in any untended (and sometimes tended) place they can get a foothold. When they do, they soon take on the appearance of having been planted owing to their rapid growth and those large attractive leaves. But look along a suburban railway line in south west London for instance, and those frond-like leaves are becoming a dominant feature in some places. In other locations, Dublin included, the climate doesn’t yet seem quite to their liking, and so far they have not jumped ship.

A two year old feral tree of heaven in west London illustrates how quickly they can become established.