Castle Frome

April 1998 – Tim Hills: The bole is free of growth to a height of about 10′. At the time of this visit many tombstones were propped against it. Girths of 21′ 0” (640cm) at 1′ and 23′ 0” (701cm) at 3′ were recorded.
May 2003: A tree survey, commissioned by the Caring for God’s Acre project was carried out by Phi Evans. A ‘fair proportion of dead wood’ in the crown led to a close inspection which concluded that this was ‘natural dieback for a tree of this age’. Its even spread of crown was noted, evidence that it has been allowed to grow naturally. It was recommended that the tombstones stacked against the trunk and other miscellaneous items be removed. They not only obscure the fine bark but also put pressure on the roots.
March 2018 Paul Wood: The Yew looked fine with a large canopy of varying degrees of deep green foliage interspersed with dead branches (not the result of trauma or intervention, but natural dieback). A spine of white wood is now highly visible on the northeasterly side of the tree next to a hole which reveals the tree to be quite hollow. Inside the hollow two well established internal stems have rooted and are fusing, giving the tree additional strength and stability. Many smaller holes are appearing where the white wood rots away. The tree was measured at the ground where girth is smallest, and a girth of 6.53m (21′ 5”) was recorded.
September 2020 – Tim Hills: Measurements as follows: 21′ 3½” (649cm) at 1′; 23′ 4½” (713cm) at 3′ and 22′ 7” (688cm) at about 5′. It would be difficult to repeat the measurements at 3′ and 5′.