In 1995, two trees were planted in a Waitrose car park along King Street in Henley-on-Thames. This is one of them. The other – well, half of it – is here:

In 16 years, this is all these sad trees have been able to grow. Having its central leader cut off obviously didn’t help that second tree any. Still, this is very ordinary. Most trees planted in parking lots look pretty dismal.

This tree was planted in Silva Cells in 2009, so it has three growing seasons under its belt. So far, we’re very happy with how it’s doing. In January the two 16 year old trees will be removed, Silva Cells will be installed, and new trees will be planted.