The exact centre of Suffolk has been calculated and marked by an oak sapling to honour the King’s coronation.
With precise measurements, the centre of the county is just west of a hamlet called Middlewood Green, which is a few miles north-east of Stowmarket, and was identified by the University of Suffolk.
Dr Mark Bowler, lecturer in wildlife, ecology & conservation science at the university, calculated the position using mapping algorithms to determine the geometric centre called the centroid.
“It is curious but true that the mid-point of Suffolk is near Middlewood Green,” said Dr Bowler.
“A centroid is the technical centre point of an area” he explained, “and it would have shifted slightly when the county boundary was redefined in the 70s.”
The current boundary of Suffolk came into effect on April 1 1974 after the Lothingland district near Great Yarmouth was ceded to Norfolk, and Newmarket was retained by Suffolk.
James Nunn who farms the land with his father, David, has agreed to corner off the plot and include the tree within the protection of his wider agri-environment management plans.
The Lord Lieutenant of Suffolk, Clare Countess of Euston, who is the King’s representative in the county, attended a small event on January 5 to plant an oak sapling specifically selected from Windsor Great Park by the Crown Estate.
The King officially became Ranger of Windsor Great Park in 2022, seventy years after his father. The Ranger of The Great Park offers oversight and guidance to the Deputy Ranger and his team in the day-to-day stewardship of one of the country’s oldest estates.
Whilst King Charles’ III coronation was last summer, the best time to plant trees is in the winter and, as 2024 marks the 50th anniversary of the Suffolk county boundary we have today, it was decided that January would be the better time to mark the occasion.
The tree is visible from the footpath Earl Stonham, and a quarter of a mile west of Larters Lane, Middlewood Green.
It can be pinpointed at the What3Words location ///lookout.stables.clocking
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