Tolkien and the origin of Treebeard

[Einarr]

From The Treason of Isengard:

Of 'Giant Treebeard' there have been many mentions in the outlines scattered through the early texts of The Lord of the Rings, but there was nothing in any of them to prepare for the reality when he should finally appear. My father said years later (Letters no. 180, 14 January 1956):

I have long ceased to invent... : I wait till I seem to know what really happened. Or till it writes itself. Thus, though I knew for years that Frodo would run into a tree-adventure somewhere far down the Great River, I have no recollection of inventing Ents. I came at last to the point, and wrote the 'Treebeard' chapter without and recollection of my previous thought: just as it now is.

Just a little thing I found while reading some of my Tolkien manuscripts. Hope you all find it interesting!

[shadowfax]

Tolkien speaks about the "fathers of the fathers of trees", and that in fangorn, there were some very old trees still alive.

When I read the following, I could not help but think of Tolkien

A Norway Spruce in the far North of Sweden, believed to be almost 10,000 years old.

As 10,000 years ago, the ice shelves were only just retreated from this part of the world, this was indeed one of the first trees to colonise what was effectively new land. Truly a father of the fathers of trees still living today.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Old_Tjikko

And another one. The Crowhusrt Yew Tree. Crowhirst is a village in Surrey (and a station on the London to Brighton line). This yew tree is believed by some to be 4000 years old. It thus predates the very old church next to which it stands and probably indicates the site may have had a cultic significance before a church was built there.

http://www.ancient-yew.org/userfiles/file/Crowhurst,SurreyApril%202011.pdf