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Research explores lost blossom through UK place names

Published:: 18 April 2024

Street sign of Bloom Park Road in Fulham, London, with pink blossoming tree next to it — Bloom Park Road in Fulham, London | © Lillie Mason

New research has found that despite blossom declining in our landscapes since 1900, the number of place names linked with blossom has doubled. Blossom-related place names are also becoming increasingly generic – indicating a lost connection with individual tree species. Find out what this means for our blossom work across the UK.

As part of our 2024 celebration of blossom, we're sharing new research that's revealed the significance of historic blossom in influencing the street and place names that still exist today.

Although areas of traditional orchards have declined, place names associated with blossom have increased, showing its continued relevance to people across England and Wales. Detailed analysis found that the number of place names associated with blossom has doubled in the last century, going from 3 per cent (23,000 of the 700,000 place names examined in 1900) to 6 per cent (51,000 of the 912,000 place names examined) in 2023.

However, the research also found that that although blossom-related place names are increasing, they have become more generic and less regionally specific.

key facts

2 times

increase of place names associated with blossom since 1900

80 per cent

of cities have seen a decline in orchard numbers but a rise in blossom street names

52 per cent

of current place names with ‘orchard’ in them are within 500 metres of an orchard that's been lost since 1900

Place names can point to our values, beliefs and shared stories – they help us navigate cultural memory as much as they do the landscape itself.

A quote by Professor Matthew HeardNational Trust Head of Environmental Research & Data

The research process

Research was carried out by our own research team – led by our Head of Environmental Research, Professor Matthew Heard, and our Head of Historic Environment, Tom Dommett – and analysed modern and historic maps using artificial intelligence (AI). The results were then matched with the results of our orchards research from 2022 (which used AI to identify symbols relating to orchards on the same maps) and found a 50 per cent decline in orchards – and their blossoming trees – across England and Wales since 1900.

Street sign of Cherry Tree Road, Woodbridge, Suffolk — Cherry Tree Road, Woodbridge, Suffolk | © Jemma Finch

Findings by region or country

London and the South East is the only region with a proportional decline in blossom-related place names since 1900, down from 7.2 per cent to 6.7 per cent.

The counties with the biggest decline in the proportion of place names associated with blossom were Berkshire (down from 12 per cent of all place names in 1900 to 9 per cent in 2023) and Hampshire (down from 16 per cent in 1900 to 11 per cent in 2023).

Despite this proportional decline, in terms of actual numbers the region has seen an almost doubling of place names linked to blossom (up from 7,754 in 1900 to 13,682 in 2023).

The top orchard-related place name terms for this region are 'orchard' (London) and 'hazel' (South East).
The West Midlands saw the biggest proportional increase of any region, going from 2.3 per cent in 1900 to 6.3 per cent today.

Meanwhile, the East Midlands's blossom-inspired street and place names have grown from 1,540 to 4,228, which is a proportional increase of 1.8 per cent since 1900.

However, the Midlands also showed blossom place names becoming more homogeneous with less use of specific varieties, such as Perry in the West Midlands and pear and vine in the East Midlands.

The top orchard-related place name terms are 'orchard' (West Midlands) and 'vine' (East Midlands).
The North-East, which once had the lowest representation of blossom-inspired names of any region or country in 1900 with just 0.7 per cent, has increased substantially to 5 per cent.

The number of blossom-related street names in the North West have also grown by a substantial 3.1 per cent since 1900, with records now showing 5,827 blossom-inspired street and place names.

The top orchard-related place name terms for this region are 'hazel' (North East) and 'orchard' (North West).
Wales has the smallest proportion of place names linked with blossom at just 3.2 per cent. This is still up 0.9 per cent since 1900, with a total of 1,704 blossom-inspired names recorded today.

However, the research also revealed Welsh language place names have halved since 1900, perhaps echoing the reduction in Welsh-language speakers.

The top orchard-related place name term for Wales is 'orchard'.

What comes next?

The lost blossom research has shown us that nature still plays a massive role in people's lives, and we want to make sure everyone can enjoy it, wherever they are.

Through our celebration of Blossom programme, which is supported by players of People’s Postcode Lottery, we're hoping to bring blossom back to as many cities and urban areas as possible through various projects, including the blossom gardens in London, Plymouth, Newcastle and Nottingham.

By 2030, we're aiming to incorporate four million blossoming trees into our ambitions to plant and establish 20 million trees across England, Wales and Northern Ireland by 2030.

Where we can, we want these plantings to reflect the cultural history of the area through the use of traditional varieties, helping the connection between people, blossom and place to endure, as well as benefiting nature.