Tree of Trees: what is sculpture at Buckingham Palace, when is lighting ceremony, who is Thomas Heatherwick?

A new structure has been erected outside of Buckingham Palace for the Jubilee weekend.

The Tree of Trees, designed by the Heatherwick Studio, consists of 350 native British trees.

But what is its significance and how will it be used? Here’s what you need to know.

What is The Tree of Trees? 

As part of the Platinum Jubilee celebrations, a sculpture constructed of 350 British native trees has been made by British designer Thomas Heatherwick.

The trees on the sculpture range from species of silver birch to rowan, larch, hornbeam and hazel.

Heatherwick, who also designed the copper petalled Cauldron which was featured at the London 2012 Olympics, said the Queen is a fan of the creation and “approved the plans”.

The 21m tall design features 80 repurposed steel branches to mimic an organic tree, with the 350 potted trees sitting on the branches in a spiral formation. LED lights are weaved through the branches for illumination.

The pots are made of aluminium bearing the Queen’s cypher.

What does The Tree of Trees symbolise?

The sculpture celebrates Her Majesty’s Green Canopy initiative, which saw over a million trees planted.

In March 2022, when the milestone was reached, the Queen said in a statement: “I am deeply touched that so many community groups, schools, families and individuals have made their unique contributions to the Green Canopy initiative.

“I hope your Jubilee trees flourish and grow for many years to come, for future generations to enjoy.”

The Tree of Trees acts as the centrepiece of the festivities marking the Queen’s historic reign, along with the Trooping the Colour and the Buckingham Palace concert.

Chief Executive Officer of the Queen’s Green Canopy, Colonel Dan Rex, said: “We wanted to celebrate in a way that creates a legacy and that can be enjoyed by everyone around the country and that everyone can get involved with.

"We are thrilled that with this tree we’ll be able to bring trees into the heart of the conversation, the heart of the celebration, which is something that the Queen is very keen on. And our hope is that it will inspire even greater tree planting in the next planting season.”

Of his design, Heatherwick said: “The tree twists and spirals, in a way symbolically spraying and arraying those 350 baby trees towards their final homes across the country. In a way it is a symbol of the bigger initiative which is about planting millions of trees”.

Where is The Tree of Trees? 

The Tree of Trees sits just outside the Buckingham Palace gates for the Platinum Jubilee celebrations and will be illuminated by Prince William on 2 June 2022.

When is the lighting of The Tree of Trees?

Worldwide, 2,800 beacons will be lit, as a tribute to the Queen. The Jubilee Beacons will be lit around the UK and Channel Islands at 9:45 pm on 2 June 2022, and broadcast live from 8.00pm to 10.pm.

The tree’s LED lights will be lit by Prince William on the Queen’s command.

It will then be dismantled after the festivities and the trees will be given to individuals and community groups in hope of inspiring a new generation of tree planters.