The witch ash

The thickest ash tree in Lithuania, measuring 7.2 meters in girth, is growing in the Plateliai Manor Park. This natural heritage object is often called the Witch’s Ash and is surrounded by many legends. One of them narrates about a devil who squeezed four ash trees and held them together until the four trunks became one. Another legend tells about a woman who bound three trees together with her scarf. As if the trees had been cursed ang no bird ever landed on them. The trees grew into one but the mark of the scarf knot has remained to this day. The third story is about a witch that stole a loaf of bread from a little girl. The witch jumped into the tree to hide from the morning sun and the crying roosters, and the loaf of bread has remained stuck in the trunk of the ash until today. Ever since, the locals have been calling the tree the Witch’s Ash.