Shop Products
Houzz Logo Print
jarpe

The most famous broom in Finland

jarpe
9 years ago

the famous balltop spruce that located aside the busy Helsinki-Lahti highway in M�nts�l�, southern finland served as a landmark for many locals aswell as travellers.

Comments (15)

  • jarpe
    Original Author
    9 years ago

    Broom was exceptionally big and symmetrical and was situated on top of 70 feet norway spruce. It could be seen from far distances.

  • jarpe
    Original Author
    9 years ago

    Broom of this size must have been result of many decades of mutated growth.

  • jarpe
    Original Author
    9 years ago

    In beginning of year 2012 papers reported that broom had been fallen down as result of either storm or incident during logging action. It was soon corrected that it was actually been cutted of on purpose by unknown monkeyman that had climbed all the way up there with little switchblade saw. This tool along with working clowes was found underneath the tree with the crashlanded broom.

  • Embothrium
    9 years ago

    It's no longer there? These are Norway spruce? There's a few like this on other conifers around here although not as dramatic.

  • jarpe
    Original Author
    9 years ago

    Media-attention was quite big and there was different theories about the motivaton of this strange act. One of favorites hyphotesis was that someone had placed a bet on executing this acrobathic stunt.
    What ever the reason was it still remains a mystery. No parts of broom had been taken.

  • wannabegardnr
    9 years ago

    how sad, to cut off the entire landmark broom. it was magnificent.

  • jarpe
    Original Author
    9 years ago

    Conifer entusiast from Lappeenranta contacted land owner few weeks later after reading about the incident on newspaper. He learned that landowner had moved the broom to his backyard. Since it had been in shadow and time was suitable for taking parts for propagation he made a travel to collect scions and succesfully grafted bunch of plants from it.

  • jarpe
    Original Author
    9 years ago

    I later came to know this nurseryman and we exchanged some plants so i now have two small babies from this famous broom growing in my collection too. This most famous witchôs broom in Finland is called `Mäntsälän palloô meaning the ball of Mäntsälä.

  • Embothrium
    9 years ago

    So there is a happy ending.

  • jarpe
    Original Author
    9 years ago

    There are some more pics of interesting finnish mutations in my webgallery, please visit.

    Here is a link that might be useful: Wild conifer mutatons

  • Toronado3800 Zone 6 St Louis
    9 years ago

    Good story. Thanks for taking the time to share.

  • maple_grove_gw
    9 years ago

    A very interesting story. Your baby ball is quite attractive.

    It would be a shame that someone should have so little respect for nature that they would commit such an act for no reason other than that they can. Or, perhaps the sight of this unnatural growth in some way offended them.

    I wonder how many grafts your friend got from the broom. Seems like the number could have been in the hundreds, if he had tried to maximize production.

    Alex

  • alley_cat_gw_7b
    9 years ago

    Yes, Very cool story...and well told with the photos. I hope your little grafts do well and the story lives on. Kudos

    Al

  • jarpe
    Original Author
    9 years ago

    I believe my friend made something like 50 grafts. But quick web search revieles that forest research institute of Finland collected 200 scions from that broom for their projekts. Part of them were grafted and part rooted. So i quess this broom will now live forever. In photo you can see scions of this broom in rootingbeds.

  • beigestonehill
    9 years ago

    Wow I love this story happy and sad thank you for sharing it with us. I hope your graft of this broom thrives.