How it works

1. Plant it. Find an open spot with room to grow for centuries — and the landowner’s permission.
2. Pin it. Tap the pink + on the map above to mark where you planted, name your oak and add a photo.
3. Watch it grow. We’ll send a gentle reminder each year to add a new photo, so you can follow your tree’s story as it rises.

Where your acorn came from

Your acorn fell from the great oak that stands in the heart of the village at Buckler’s Hard, down by the river in the garden of the Master Builder’s House. For generations it has watched over the shipyard, and autumn after autumn it scatters the acorns that are now being nurtured into saplings. One of those saplings is yours — a living thread spun from a single ancient tree, ready for you to carry out into the world and plant somewhere new. From this one oak, a whole forest begins to grow.

A tree with history in its roots

Buckler’s Hard is where warships were built for the Royal Navy, among them HMS Agamemnon — Nelson’s favourite. It took thousands of mature oaks to build a single ship like her. Plant your acorn well, protect it, and in 150 years it could become a roof beam, a ship’s timber or a treasured piece of furniture — strength and shelter handed on, just as it was handed to us. Oaks have stood for strength, long life and the sacred throughout history. Yours begins today.

Give your oak the best start

Water it through its first few dry summers, keep grass and weeds back from the base, and protect it from rabbits and deer with a guard and a stake. A good trowel makes planting easy — and both trowels and tree supports are available at Buckler’s Hard, with all proceeds going to the Trust.

Every acorn helps

Your tree — and any trowel or support — is a gift to the Buckler’s Hard Shipyard Trust, a registered educational charity (no. 1212373). Every acorn helps us share the story of this remarkable place with the next generation.

One acorn. One map. A forest in the making.

Thank you for planting a little piece of Buckler’s Hard.