Oak that remembers Potocki and Makhno

Giant oak that grows in the Volovyk area, on the outskirts of the village of Holovanivsk (Kirovohrad oblast), is one of the tourists sites of the region described in tourist guides. However, not everyone can find this tree right away. At the entrance to the Volovyk area there is a stand, indicating that there is a “botanical nature monument” growing nearby. But there is no indication of where one should go to see it – wether it is to the right, to the left, or straight ahead. That’s why many people go in circles before they see this nature miracle about 100 meters from the entrance.

This oak is over 400 years old. The mighty giant remembers the days of the Comonwealth, when the territory of modern Holovanivsk raion was a part of the “Uman Wasteland.” Later the Cossacks rested under it (Milky Way passed right by this place). After Uman Massacre in 1768 detachment of Cossacks led by Holovan was hiding in the woods near Holovanivsk. The oak also remembers the founder of “Sofiivka” – Count Stanislaw Potocki. This land belonged to the Potocki family from the middle of the 13th century until the late 19th century. The oak saw the turbulent years of the past century, Makhno, who passed throught the Holovanivsk raion with battles, bombing of the forest by German troops in the summer of 1941.

The oak have withstood it all. The hight of the tree is 25 meters, the circumference of the trunk is about five meters, the diameter of the crown – 25 meters. Despite its advanced age, the oak is growing and generously sharing with its energy.

By the way, the oldest oak in Ukraine grows in Yuzefynska Dacha in Rokytne raion, Rivne oblast. That tree is over 1,300 years old.