Scone’s plant hunter

One of the foremost of the 19th century plant hunters was David Douglas, who was born in the village of Scone. Aged 11, he was apprenticed to the head gardener at the palace, remaining there for seven years. Douglas went on his first plant-hunting expedition to north America in 1823. Over the next 11 years he sent nearly 300 varieties of tree, bush, plant and seed back to the UK. This was a record number for any plant hunter at the time. The plant most associated with him is the Douglas fir. This was first documented by another Scottish naturalist, Archibald Menzies, in 1791. He found it on Vancouver Island. However, it was Douglas who brought the seed back to Britain. He made sure that Menzies was given due credit by giving the plant the botanical name of In 1827 he presented his former employers with seed from which grew the first-ever example to be planted in Britain. That original fir remains one of the most arresting sights in the estate. More than 120ft (37m) tall, with a girth of more than 5ft (1.5m), it is a venerable presence with its thick, fluted, dark brown bark and soft blue-green needles. A massive branch grows downward from its side before curving upward, almost creating a tree in its own right. The gardening team inspect it yearly and it remains in good condition. “All of the millions of Douglas firs can be traced back to this tree and two others also grown from seed sent back by David Douglas from his travels,” explains Brian Cunningham. “They are still known as the Mother and Father trees.” Douglas’ connection to Scone is celebrated in a wooden pavilion in the Pinetum. Presented by the National Tree Collections of Scotland, it is built of Douglas fir and slate recycled from other estate buildings. Douglas died aged 35 in mysterious circumstances in Hawaii. His body was discovered, along with a bull, in a pit. It was initially assumed he had been crushed by the bull. However, an escaped convict was the last person to see him alive, leading to speculation of foul play. Today, a monument stands at the spot where he died.