Millennium yews

The project helped raise awareness of environmental issues within the church and provided a large collection of yew trees of known provenance.

[2] Botanist Fergus Kinmonth led a collection team that used climbers to take cuttings at high level from some sixty yews.

Graham Preskett composed "The Yew Tree Hymn" for the occasion and the supermarket Waitrose provided specially designed carrier bags to transport the cuttings.

The Royal Mail issued a commemorative stamp to celebrate the project, as part of its 2000 "Tree and Leaf" series.

[1][3] Those planted included trees at Lambeth Palace, home of the Archbishop of Canterbury, and the National Memorial Arboretum.

[2][5] Often dignitaries were invited to ceremonially plant the trees and these included bishops, vicars, celebrities and members of the Royal Family.