How is a tree valued?

A plane tree in central London has been valued at £750,000 under a new system that puts a "price" on trees. How?

A six-foot-wide plane in Berkeley Square, Mayfair, is thought to be the UK's most valuable tree.

Large, mature, city trees like this one are being blamed - sometimes wrongly and often fatally - for damage to neighbouring properties.

But it is hoped a new valuation system will make it harder for "expensive" trees to be felled due to doubtful suspicions they are to blame for subsidence.

So how are trees priced? Size is the biggest factor, followed by population density of the surrounding area (how many people enjoy the tree), the size of the canopy, its life expectancy, its impact (does it flower or drop annoying honeydew) and any special factors, such as Queen Victoria planting it.

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