Couple's real life 'money tree' produces seeds worth £5,000 for the first time

A couple who bought a very rare tree have found it has produced seeds which could be worth over £5,000, making this their magic money tree.

Pamela and Alistair Thompson of Wichenford bought the Wollemi pine tree for £70 back in 2010 after they learned this was the sort of tree which dinosaurs used to munch on.

Planting it in their garden, it has finally produced some seeds, and each one can be worth as much as £10. Given the amount of seeds, they could stand to make thousands on each batch.

The pair of 75-year-olds reckon 'it really does prove that money can grow on trees'.

The Wollemi pine dates back to the days when dinosaurs ruled the Earth, which gives it the 'dinosaur pine' nickname, and they were feared to have died out when the dinosaur disaster changed life on this planet forever.

However, in 1994, a few of the trees were discovered in Australia and Wollemi saplings were sold all over the world, including to Pamela and Alistair.

They replanted it in their garden and now it's finally producing seeds, with the couple finding five large cones growing and each one containing around 100 seeds.

Given that the tree is considered to be critically endangered, they're hoping that the seeds will be planted and help it make a comeback.

Pamela said: "It was very exciting actually collecting the seeds from such an ancient tree that lived when dinosaurs roamed - I shall definitely try to germinate seeds from a critically endangered tree.

"We have around five large cones which have produced about a hundred or so large seeds each.

The elderly couple have a haul of seeds worth as much as £5,000, though they're planning to sell them for less than that (SWNS)

"Some of the other cones are smaller, about the size of a golf ball each, which I am not sure will produce seeds this year, but could well do next year.

"It would be lovely to see just how many seeds we can produce, but I have been very surprised by the numbers so far this year."

While there's money to be made from this tree, the couple are hoping to use it to raise funds for charity, and as such, while their haul could be worth around £5,000 they're actually planning on flogging it for about £1 per seed instead.

They said they 'want to make them accessible for people' and they also don't know how many seeds will end up turning into healthy trees.

Meanwhile, this Sunday (24 August), the couple are planning on opening their garden to the public as part of the National Garden Scheme.