From November 8 to December 20, 2024, the general public - including you - is invited to vote for its favorite tree from among the 14 specimens selected in theTree of the Year 2024 competition. In Île-de-France, a specimen from Crouy-sur-Ourcq, in the Seine-et-Marne département, will defend the region.
The lucky winner is none other than a smooth elm, selected by the Ile-de-France competition jury as the region's most emblematic tree. Having survived a mass extinction of its species, the selected smooth elm has in fact resisted the deadly disease that decimated many specimens of the same species in France in the 1970s. As a result, only a few specimens remain in the Île-de-France region, of which this tree is one: it has been classified as a "remarkable surviving tree" by the Conseil d'architecture, d'urbanisme et de l'environnement de la Seine-et-Marne (CAUE 77).
More than 25 meters high, this tree has stood alongside the GR11 on the route de Montigny in Crouy-sur-Ourcq for more than 100 years. Numerous associations took part in the jury, including Île-de-France Nature, Terre Sauvage, the Office national des forêts (ONF), the A.R.B.R.E.S association and the Ligue de protection des oiseaux (LPO).
So, to follow the Tree of the Year 2024 competition, don't miss the calendar to vote for your favorite tree: