Pontypool Old Sweet Chestnut is Wales' Tree of the Year 2019

Image source, Mark Zytynski / WTML

Image caption, And the winner is... Pontypool's Old Sweet Chestnut

A 400-year-old tree with a hole through its giant trunk has been named Wales' Tree of the Year 2019.

Pontypool's Old Sweet Chestnut won a public vote of a shortlist of seven historic trees that have earned public affection over the decades.

"Generations of children have played inside this tree," said tree expert Rob McBride after the on Wednesday.

The tree is in a park gifted to the Torfaen town in the early 20th Century.

Winning trees from each of the four countries of the UK receive a 拢1,000 reward which can be used to fund a health check from a tree expert, educational material or a celebration.

One of the four winners will now be selected to represent the UK in the European Tree of the Year competition in 2020.