Saint- Mards-de- Blacarville

July 2018 Tim Hills: The yew is a large and powerful presence in this churchyard. It has never had much space and one side is now a mere 30cm from the wall that separates road from churchyard. On the other side it is only 10m from the church. It therefore seems absurd that a ‘jardin de souvenir’ – Garden of Remembrance – should have been set up so close to the yew, complete with plants only inches from its bole. I was unable to repeat Wim Peeters measurement at 130cm taken on 15/07/2011, when he recorded a girth of 6.15m. This was because of the twiggy growth that now covers the trunk at that height on the section of trunk facing the road. I was able to record 6.14m (20′ 2”) at a height of 10cm. The tree’s hollowness can be seen on its east side with large holes and internal stems. Foliage was prolific and healthy.