The Queen’s Green Canopy is a beautiful photography book showcasing 70 ancient trees and 70 ancient woodlands dedicated by the QGC initiative in honour of Her Majesty’s Platinum Jubilee.

The book features extraordinary photographs of the United Kingdom’s best-loved trees, many of which inspired historic figures, artists and writers through the centuries.

Alongside these photographs are short written pieces from contributors including Dame Judi Dench, Alan Titchmarsh, Dame Joanna Lumley, Adam Henson, Archbishop Justin Welby and Danny Clarke, as well as conservation experts from the Woodland Trust and the Duchy of Cornwall. In these pieces they reflect on the trees that have made a mark on their lives and the importance of protecting Britain’s woodlands for future generations.

Selected trees include yews at a Cotswold’s church which inspired JRR Tolkien; the apple tree believed to have inspired Sir Isaac Newton’s theory of gravity; the Five Hundred Acre Wood in East Sussex immortalised in AA Milne’s Winnie the Pooh books; and the 2,500-year-old tree where Henry VIII may have proposed to Anne Boleyn.

So far 3 million trees have been planted by communities, schools and businesses across the country as part of the QGC initiative. Through incredible imagery and joyful pieces of writing, The Queen’s Green Canopy celebrates Her Majesty’s extraordinary life and the amazing legacy she leaves behind.

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‘This is a wonderful book: beautiful and important’ – Joanna Lumley

‘A must-read for all conservationists, environmentalists and nature lovers’ – Sir Richard Branson

‘Adrian’s stunning photographs capture the majesty of these iconic trees.’ – Geraint Richards, Chair of Action Oak

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A Portrait of the Tree is a repository of memories, and a testament to the British landscape. Trees are revealed as religious signifiers, historical landmarks, national emblems.

Sparked by a simple question: ‘What is your favourite tree?’, photographer Adrian Houston discovered a wealth of fascinating stories enmeshed with these giants of the natural world – some of miraculous survival, others of sheltering royalty, or witnessing history, or simply of personal grief and renewal. Adrian photographed each nominated tree looking utterly glorious: spotlit by night, bathed in morning sunshine, wreathed in delicate mist or blazing with autumn colour.

From the cedars of Highclere Castle to the plane trees of London, ancient pine woods of the Scottish Highlands to veteran oaks that have stood witness to time; from native stalwarts such as the monumental beech to endangered giant redwoods. This stunning celebration bears witness to the might and majesty of the lungs of the earth – the tree.

Includes:
Joanna Lumley, Tony Kirkham, Dr George McGavin, Antony Gormley, Jasper Conran, Alice Temperley, Alan Titchmarsh, Sir Richard Carew Pole, the Reverend Lucy Winkett