AN EIGHT-year-old Portishead school boy has discovered first hand that from little acorns grow large oak trees .

AN EIGHT-year-old Portishead school boy has discovered first hand that 'from little acorns grow large oak trees'.

Joe Painter, of Hallett's Way, picked up an acorn on the way to preschool when he was just three years old.

His mother Angela said: "He told me he wanted to grow a big oak tree just like the one he found the acorn lying under."

He planted the acorn in his back garden and sure enough, it began to grow. Over the past five years, Joe has nurtured the tree, but this year mum Angela had concerns the tree would soon grow too big for their back garden and suggested Joe thought about what they should do with it.

"I knew straight away the best place for it," said Joe. "We have a conservation area at school and I thought that would be the perfect place for it."

Joe's teacher at St Peter's Primary School welcomed the idea and the tree has now been removed from Joe's garden and planted safely in the conservation area at the school.

"They are going to put a little sign on the tree," said Joe. "So that everyone knows I grew it and then donated it to school.