Staff said the individual was captured on CCTV footage hacking down the prized 30-year-old lime tree after sneaking onto their premises during nightfall.
And they later discovered that around 50 ‘Ecoplug Stump Killers’ had been inserted into ten more trees, each dating up to 100 years old, which poisons them.
Police said a 37-year-old man was arrested on suspicion of criminal damage following the incident, and he has since been bailed as enquiries continue.
But the hospice’s stunned chief executive, Tina Turner, said her team were still confused as to why they had been targeted.
She said: “Yesterday we delivered a letter to neighbouring homes about an act of vandalism which had occurred within the hospice grounds on the evening of Friday 2nd February.
“An individual, as seen on CCTV, chose to trespass in the hospice gardens and cut down one of our long-standing 60ft trees for reasons which remain unknown.
“Thankfully, no further damage was caused from this mindless action – had the tree fallen in a different direction the results and consequences could have been very different.
“We truly hope and believe this will be an isolated incident and we would once again like to thank all those people who have kindly shared messages of support.”
Police said the disturbing attack took place at the hospice, which provides care for people with life-limiting illnesses, between 8:37pm and 8:52pm.
And they had arrested a suspect roughly two weeks later.
Director of income generation at the hospice, Helen Knowles, previously said there were “no words” to describe the impact of the tree felling.
And she added they had now looked into increasing their security measures following the “calculated act of vandalism”.
She said: “To think that someone out there, in our local community, has that much disdain towards our hospice grounds and has the sheer audacity to attempt to kill off our beautiful trees – well there are simply no words for it.
“It is deeply saddening that we will now need to reevaluate our security measures.
“Our grounds are only intended to provide comfort for those going through the most challenging times, but they have sadly been targeted by a calculated act of vandalism once again.
“We must wait for the expert advice and then plan our next steps accordingly.
” It would be devastating to think that the trees would need to come down –from a historical, sentimental and financial point of view.
“However the greatest concern is the potential damage not just on our grounds but to neighbouring residents too, and of course the health and safety of our patients and families, our staff, volunteers and visitors and of course our neighbours.”
