AN author who has written a book about some of the oldest trees in the world is due to give a short talk in Liskeard on Friday (December 11).

Julian Hight has researched the stories of 100 trees in 39 countries for his new book World Tree Story – history and legends of the world’s ancient trees.

Following the release of his first book, Britain’s Tree Story, for the National Trust in 2011, the Westcountry author set off with his camera to find out more about significant trees around the world, some of which are between 1,000 and 5,000 years old.

The self-published book, which has been supported through a crowd-funding campaign, compares archive photographs and engravings with new pictures taken by Julian, who travelled to Europe, Asia, America and Oceania.

He said: ‘I am really pleased with the way the book has come out. It looks spectacular and has been very well received. My hope is that it will help raise awareness of the world’s historic ancient trees and promote their conservation.’

Julian will be giving a short talk on the world’s ancient trees at The Bookshop in Liskeard at 4.15pm, which will be followed by a book signing session.