A RARE prehistoric plant once thought to be extinct has been given a new home after being presented to Wiltshire College Lackham.

The Wollemi Pine was given to the college by Mark Taylor from Cornwall and presented to head gardener Brin Thornton and head of horticulture Carl Gill.

The ancient pine was thought to be extinct until it was re-discovered in an isolated gorge in Australia in 1994.

It is now propagated by a selected group of growers worldwide.

Mr Thornton said: "We have always prided ourselves on keeping some unusual plants here at Lackham and this is a great addition to that collection.

"With many people unable to keep rare collections these days, it is even more important that we continue to look for new and exciting plants."

Mr Gill added: "We are extremely pleased to have been given a Wollemi specimen and to be involved in a conservation project of this size and importance."

The pine tree dates back to the time of the dinosaurs and its discovery over 13 years ago has been likened to finding a living dinosaur roaming around today.

It is believed there are as few as 100 trees in the wild, all in a single canyon within the Wollemi National Park. The gift to the college is part of the world wild conservation project now taking place.

The college will be holding a planting ceremony for the tree over the next few weeks in a secret location on the Lackham campus near Lacock.