Mulberry bush cutting from HMP Wakefield planted at Yorkshire Sculpture Park

The new bush has been planted at Yorkshire Sculpture Park

A cutting from a 19th Century tree thought to have inspired the nursery rhyme Here We Go Round The Mulberry Bush has been planted at Yorkshire Sculpture Park (YSP).

The tree stood at HMP Wakefield until it was cut down in 2019 due to disease.

Cuttings taken before it died were used to grow a replacement for the prison and one planted at the YSP on Thursday.

The rhyme is thought to have been invented by female inmates as they danced around the tree to keep warm.

Mark Chesman, head of estates at the park, explained the why the prison's bush was linked to the traditional rhyme.

"After it was originally planted within the prison walls, female prisoners were said to have danced around the tree to keep warm and they invented the rhyme to help keep their children amused."

He said it was a privilege the park had been chosen to help preserve the bush's heritage.

The orginal bush at HMP Wakefield was removed in 2019

HMP Wakefield continues to celebrate the bush's heritage, with the staff diner called The Mulberry.

The prison's crest also includes an image of the bush and a neighbouring road is named Mulberry Way.

A plaque will recount the tale of the bush and its links with the nursery rhyme to park visitors

A planting ceremony took place and a plaque was placed nearby to inform visitors of its important heritage.

The original bush was shortlisted as a Tree of the Year Contender in 2016

HMP Wakefield, a Category A jail housing some of Britain's most notorious criminals, is the largest high security prison in the United Kingdom and western Europe.