Identifying Trees

I spent a fantastic morning in early September with members of the British Naturalists Association (Central and North Essex Branch)in the woods at Little Baddow, learning to identify trees.

This is something I'd wanted to be better at for some long while, but its not always so easy to be ferreting about in a book looking things up while you're out and about, especially with active little boys around .. better to be playing and having fun! So to have the opportunity of someone more experienced taking the time to actually show me how to recognise a range of the more common trees was a great treat.

I'm sure I won't remember a lot of what I saw, but even if a few trees stick each time then I will be getting there .. and I'll definitely go again next year, as it was such a wonderful way to spend a couple of hours with lovely people in beautiful peaceful surroundings. The things I was most pleased to have seen were the Wild Service Tree, which is apparently quite rare, and the seed pods of Hornbeam which are beautiful .. I would have had no idea what they were beforehand. I can now also distinguish between a Sycamore and a Field Maple! It was also interesting to see healthy young elm trees growing .. I had not realised that they are not affected by Dutch Elm disease until they reach the height of about 10 feet.

I find writing things out helps me to remember (partly why I blog!) but also I am finding that its important when I have been shown things to go straight out again within a few days to look for the trees or plants again, while the new knowledge is fresh. And, later that week, I was lucky enough to stumble across a beautiful area of trees at Wivenhoe Park on the University of Essex campus. This gave me the chance to test my knowledge and take some pictures to reinforce what I had learnt.

Learning about different types of Oak trees.. on the Pendunculate Oak, acorns have stems but leaves don't, as seen here. With Sessile Oaks it is the other way around (am on the hunt but haven't found one yet).

And here is Alder, my favourite tree from the whole experience. Completely new to me, I remembered we were told it liked/could happily tolerate the wet, and here at Wivenhoe were alder trees growing right at the edge of a lake. Its got a nice distinctively-shaped leaf for the novice spotter and, best of all, its cones stay on the tree right the year round giving you another means to identify it.

As we went round I collected a leaf from each tree and wrote its name in biro on the back as a reference (sacrilege, I know, but for the greater good!). Then when I got home I was able to press and keep the leaves in an album. I had scribbled little notes of what were told onto the back of the handout, and I copied these out alongside.

Evergreen

I love the tradition of bringing greenery into the house during the darkest part of the year.. a reminder that the earth is only sleeping and will burst into life once more once she has shed her old layers, rested and renewed herself.

I made this little wreath for the front door from the evergreens in the herb garden, its just bay and rosemary. They both smelled divine while I worked with them. Had intended (indeed, still intend!) weaving a scarlet ribbon and adding pine cones, berries and other decorative bits later this week.. but it just looked so simple and fresh and green that I couldn't bring myself to do it yet.

This year we finally have an eco christmas tree which is actually growing in its pot and will live beyond the Christmas festivities. Yes, before you ask, it drops needles.. but I don't see that as a problem. I hoover them up. I like the ritual of watering it a little every day. Its nice to have something to nurture at a time when we are no longer out working daily in the garden.

Yesterday, driving through the winter countryside I saw mistletoe growing high up in trees for the first time.. a magical sight and it made me determined to look up some of the folklore surrounding this and other plants associated with this time of the year. I filled the hanging baskets by the front door with lovely variegated ivy which, like mistletoe, had its use banned by the church for its strong pagan (ie pre-Christian) associations.. yet they are still widely used, along with holly, though I am sure not many folks would now know why.

Share with me anything that you know .. and I'll add links or a new post if I find anything interesting?

UPDATE (Dec 30th 2011):

Found this wonderful Susun Weed article about Rosemary which includes the following:

"Old herbals hint that rosemary exerts its influence magically as well as physically. Burned as an incense, twined into a wreath, or grown in a pot, rosemary protects the house and those who live in it, especially the women..

Rosemary is a traditional Christmas decoration – partly because it smells good, and partly because pruning rosemary back mid-winter makes it stronger and healthier. So don’t hesitate to cut bunches of it for beauty."

Castle Park

Walking through Castle Park, kicking up the leaves and bothering the squirrels as the sun started to sink on a crispy autumn day..

My son loves the bandstand .. he thinks the HaaHoos live there (from in the NightGarden)

We have our picnics on this bench under this tree in the summer months, looking out over the park

Some evergreens, some trees already bare silhouettes and some in the act of disrobing, scantily clad in gold and scarlet!

Tree Tribute

National Tree Week

Those in the UK might be interested to know about the Tree O'Clock event which is taking place next Saturday, 5th December ... a mass tree-planting exercise! You can either go along to one of the many local planting events or you can pledge to plant a native species tree at home. All the information you need can be found at Breathing Places, which is well worth a visit even if you can't participate in the event.

"To help celebrate National Tree Week, BBC Learning has teamed up with Guinness World Records for Tree O'Clock – a nationwide challenge to plant as many trees as possible within a single hour, uniting the nation in an event which will provide a lasting legacy and an amazing learning opportunity for all ages.

At 11.00am on Saturday 5 December everyone is invited to join in and "do one thing" for nature by simply planting a tree and, in doing so, learn the benefits of plantingthe right tree in the right place.

In a recent survey for The Woodland Trust, 86% of people asked said they would like to see more trees being planted in their local area. And over 70% said if they had a wood within walking distance it would encourage them to exercise."

Queens Wood

If you go down to the woods today, you'll never believe your eyes ..... well I couldn't anyway, the floor was carpeted in beautiful wood anemones which I had to stop and admire.



This is Queen's Wood, Highgate, and we were only passing, so I couldn't stop for a proper walk, only stretch my legs a little and drink in the fresh smell of the earth and trees and spring sunshine (5 minutes later it was hailing!). I'm hoping to visit again soon to see some of the other woodland flowers.



I also loved the way this fragile pretty blossom contrasted against the dark knarled bark of a tree trunk - old man winter garlanded with soft spring flowers.

Rowan

Also known as 'Mountain Ash', the Rowan tree (sorbus aucuparia) was once widely planted for its supposedly beneficial effect in driving away witches! All parts are astringent and have been used in tanning and producing a black dye. The wood was traditionally used for poles and barrel hoops.

The bark and fruit (either fresh or dried) have been used medicinally - a decoction of bark is taken for diarrhoea and the ripe berries are used to make an astringent gargle for sore throats and inflamed tonsils. To stimulate the appetite, a teaspoonful of rowan jam taken daily is recommended.

Flowers May to July
Fruits in August



PLEASE NOTE: These notes on the history and use of herbs have been compiled for general interest and are not intended as medical advice, for which you should consult a professional herbalist.

BIBLIOGRAPY:
‘Herbs and Healing Plants of Britain and Europe’ Dieter Podlech (1987)
'A Modern Herbal' Mrs M. Grieve FRHS ed. Mrs C. F. Leyel (1973)

Woodland Appeal

I'm wondering whether anyone in the UK who sees this in time might be able to help - The Woodland Trust are appealing for people to ring up and vote for their project to create a new wood near Colchester, Essex to win lottery funding (see details below).

The phone number to ring is 0871 626 8803 and the call must be before midnight tonight (Wed 26th November).

Many thanks for your help!


****** FROM THE WOODLAND TRUST WEBSITE ******

We need your urgent help. Our appeal to create a new wood at Elmstead Market in Colchester Essex has the chance to win nearly £50,000, as part of the Big Lottery Fund's People's Millions contest - but only if it gets enough telephone votes.

As well as protecting ancient woodland and providing habitat for endangered wildlife, like barn owls, buzzards and water voles, the new wood will provide people with more green spaces - if we can raise enough funds.

If you'd like to help, please call the voting number which will be released during the ITV Anglia East evening news and on the Big Lottery Fund website from 9am until midnight - on Wed 26th November.



Thank you in advance,

Mark Brown
Woodland Trust grants officer

Oak Galls

This morning I stumbled across these photos lying forgotten on my phone since a wonderful late summer walk in the Essex/Suffolk countryside back in August. There were lots of these galls on the oaks we passed, along with lots of healthy looking acorns.





I particularly liked this (slightly blurry!) one, where you can see the tinge of red..



I didn't know anything about oak galls, except that they were used for making ink in medieval times and had a lot of tannin, so I did a bit of reading up and thought other folks might also like to see the links I found. I had no idea that there were so many different types and was glad to discover that the wasps that make them don't pose any real threat to the trees.

Here's what the RHS have to say, here's a picture of a 'Knopper Gall' which seems the closest to my photos (double click to enlarge)

Here are Wikipedia entries on the 'Knopper Gall' in particular and Gall Wasps in general

and here is a link to the British Plant Gall Society with instructions for recording oak gall sitings.

Oak

The Greeks held the oak tree (Quercus robur) sacred and the Romans dedicated it to Jupiter. In the pre-Christian west, the oak was associated with thunder-gods such as Thor because of its low electrical resistance which caused it to be struck by lightening. Couples married under oak trees before the advent of Christianity, when preaching often took place under the shade of an oak - leading to 'gospel oak' place names.

The oak is the emblem of hospitality and strength. Its bark, leaves and acorns all have medicinal uses. The bark is used to tan leather and dye wool purple, while the acorns are used to feed swine.

The astringent effects of oak were well known in ancient times and Galen applied the bruised leaves to heal wounds. The decoction has been used as a gargle in chronic sore throat and the decoction of acorns and bark, made with milk, has been considered an antidote to poisonous herbs and medications.

It is the bark which is now mostly used in medicine - it is collected in the spring from young trees and dried in the sun. It can be taken as a substitute for quinine in intermittent fever, taken with chamomile flowers, and is useful in chronic diarrhoea and dysentery.

A bitter, strongly astringent, antiseptic herb which reduces inflammation and controls bleeding.


PLEASE NOTE: These notes on the history and use of herbs have been compiled for general interest and are not intended as medical advice, for which you should consult a professional herbalist.

BIBLIOGRAPY:
'A Modern Herbal' Mrs M. Grieve FRHS ed. Mrs C. F. Leyel (1973)
'The Herb Society's Complete Medicinal Herbal' Penelope Ody MNIMH (1993)
'RHS Encyclopedia of Herbs and Their Uses' Deni Brown (2002)

Walk in the Woods

Hello again!
And many thanks for all the kind comments you've left for me over the last couple of weeks. I'm sorry that I haven't been able to join you all of late.

I had a wonderful trip out last week walking in woods not too far from where I live and wanted to share the experience with my Earth and Tree friends ..



It was so soothing to walk beneath the trees in the green, and breathe the soft air.

These photos were taken in woods at Trent Park, which were once part of the royal hunting estate of Enfield Chase, dating back to the fourteenth century. They show part of a rectangular moat which surrounded a medieval manor complex.

Green Metropolis

Apologies for my absence over the last week or two and for not being able to respond to comments as usual .. I'm hoping to be back to something approaching usual service soon!

Meanwhile, I thought others out there might be interested in Green Metropolis, which is a site I just started using for recycling my vast collection of paperbacks. Basically, you list your available paperbacks as available and if someone wants to buy one then they pay Green Metropolis £3.75. Of this, £3 goes to the seller (who then posts the book on to the customer) and a donation is made to the Woodland Trust. Sellers have the option of donating any money they make to the Trust as well, which is what I intend to do. Its a great way to buy paperbacks, too, because a new one is £6.99 or £7.99 in the shops so you can get a used one in excellent condition for half the price and save some trees!



I've been listing my first batch of books this week and found the site very easy to use - quick and helpful and efficient - you just type in an ISBN and the database does everything else for you. So if it sounds like it might be of interest, I'd recommend popping on over and having a look.

Green Fair

A wonderful thing - I've just been to the Better Haringey Green Fair which was held just over the road from our house this afternoon.

It was so nice to see the green space outside Tottenham town hall being used for such a great purpose - it used to be behind railings, overgrown, full of litter and only frequented by vagrants and winos. But a year or two back the council put money and effort into sorting it out, opening it up and adding broad paved access paths and lovely old-fashioned street lights to make it safer. It is used a lot now and looks great.

But I digress! Back to the Green Fair ... lots of stalls with local campaigning, wildlife and recycling groups. I chatted to some lovely people, including the local Friends of the Earth group who had a bloke dressed up as an orang-u-tan to launch their campaign about Bio-Fuels: the EU is proposing a directive requiring 10% of petrol and diesel be made from biofuels by 2020, but using land for palm oil is causing food shortages and accelerating rain-forest destruction .. find out more here and contact your MEP about blocking the proposal.

It was great to visit the stalls and I signed petitions and MP letters on a number of issues and picked up lots of leaflets.

Thought I'd share some of the info and links, in case anybody's interested?

I got a wonderful 'STOP! Don't bin it, recycle it!' sticker which I'm going to stick on the lid of our kitchen bin to remind everyone to think twice about whether something can be recycled. This was from Recycle for London whose website tells you where to find your nearest recycling facilities and has lots of info on more ways to recycle kitchen and garden household waste.

At the BBC Breathing Places stand I was given a free CD 'tune into the dawn chorus: audio guide' which has the songs of different birds on it plus a quiz at the end.. brilliant! I can only recognise one or two, and would really like to learn some more so that I can listen out for them. We have a pretty good dawn chorus here, despite being in a built up city area. There's a little booklet to go with it which has pictures of all the birds and advice on encouraging birds into your space. You can hear and see some of them here and also download a beautiful kingfisher screensaver. Apparently, once a year in May there is an International Dawn Chorus Day.. shame we just missed this year's one, but definitely something to get involved with in 2009! Some more bird links you might like are British Trust for Ornithology and the RSPB.

I was also given a 'tree party' pocket guide - which has tree-planting tips plus spotting tips for common local trees. You can download your own copy here and, if you have kids, you might be interested in the Tree For All initiative, too?

Well, I hope you found something to interest you somewhere in all that! I'll add the links to the side bar in my continuing quest to develop Earth and Tree as a sort of resource centre for information on all these earth friendly types of thing.

Tree Tribute

Time for this month's tree tribute. As its May, I thought we might indulge in a bit of a blossom fest? One of nature's real joys each year, for me, at least.

A real treat this month has been learning from Cheryl at My Wildlife Sanctuary how the Hawthorn 'blushes' once it has been pollinated in the spring. Her post includes a marvellous photo which captures the lovely pink tint on the white blossoms.

Blushing Hawthorn

The perfect companion to this is Dave's hawthorn post at Osage and Orange which shows the varieties specific to his part of the world. My favourite thing about blogging is how much I learn from other bloggers and how it has made me think much more globally.

Hawthorns in Columbus Park

Also on the springtime blossom theme, I would highly recommend a visit to Ruthie's blog to see her crab-apple blossom in all its glory (as well as some spectacularly colourful birds!).

Colours of Spring

Enjoy your trip!

Elderflower Cordial

Just wanted to share this link to an Elderflower Cordial recipe which I was very kindly sent by Naturewitch... I know some of you out there will like to see it too.

I now have my very own elder in my herb garden, a young tree which obligingly self-seeded itself into a tub.. you can imagine how thrilled I am! It is small enough that I think it has a good few years before it becomes too large for the roof garden, and it is covered with little flowerbuds. Many of the local elder trees are already in bloom, so I'm looking forward to seeing the first blossom on the Hedgewitch tree sometime soon.

Hawthorn

Also known as ‘may’, Hawthorn has long been considered sacred and the custom of going ‘a-maying’ and choosing a May Queen pre-dates Christianity. The hawthorn has a close association with crowns, most significantly with Christ’s crown of thorns, but also with the English succession, as Richard III’s crown was found hanging on a hawthorn bush after the battle of Bosworth. The name ‘hawthorn’ reflects its habit and history, as ‘haw’ is an old word for ‘hedge’.

Hawthorn was traditionally used to treat kidney and bladder problems, but since the late 19th century its main application has been as a heart remedy and today it is used to treat heart and circulatory problems. An infusion of flowering tops can be used for poor circulation and a decoction of the flowers and berries, both astringent, will treat sore throats.

An aromatic, diuretic, astringent, tonic, warming herb which improves peripheral circulation, regulates heart rate and blood pressure.

Flowers May - June



PLEASE NOTE: These notes on the history and use of herbs have been compiled for general interest and are not intended as medical advice, for which you should consult a professional herbalist.

BIBLIOGRAPY:
‘Herbs and Healing Plants of Britain and Europe’ Dieter Podlech (1987)
'A Modern Herbal' Mrs M. Grieve FRHS ed. Mrs C. F. Leyel (1973)
'The Herb Society's Complete Medicinal Herbal' Penelope Ody MNIMH (1993)
'RHS Encyclopedia of Herbs and Their Uses' Deni Brown (2002)

Tree Tribute

There have been some wonderful tree posts lately on the blogs that I visit and I really wanted to pull them together for everyone to share .... and then I found out that it was just 'Arbor Day', what more fitting time to do so!

First up is my favourite ever tree post by Cheryl (aka wonderwoman) at My Wildlife Sanctuary. She is talking with great empathy, wisdom and reverence about a friend of hers, who happens to be a tree.. I found it a very moving experience.

Another tree tribute I love is by an etsy friend of mine who blogs at What Does the Golden Mean? She visited some very ancient trees, and her words and pictures convey their powerful presence and the feelings this invoked.

I was captivated by Mark's collage of buds at The Greenfingered Photographer .. an inspiring image, full of hope and promise. How satisfying to have planted these trees and then see them come to life like this!

There are so many more I could include, maybe I'll do a monthly tree tribute post? Show me your links, if you've written or read a good post lately.

Sunset

Sunset over Tottenham ... I just love when you get those lilac and peach colours together in the sky

Stop Global Warming

I just visited this website and found a list of tips for reducing carbon emissions. The list is long, but I have picked out things that are do-able for me and my lifestyle (or are, in fact, things I'm already doing).

I have always felt fairly powerless to make significant changes, as I live in rented accomodation so cannot do the major things our house needs like double-glazing or draught-proofing etc. But I was amazed by how many of the things on the list didn't apply to me in a POSITIVE way.. for example, the fact that I don't use a car or a dishwasher. And we don't have central heating. So it turns out I'm doing better than I thought, after all, which is heartening!

One day I'll hopefully live in an eco-house with solar panels, but until then, here are my little contributions..

Use Recycled Paper
Make sure your printer paper is 100% post consumer recycled paper. Save 5 lbs. of carbon dioxide per ream of paper.

This is something I've been working on recently .. I have found an affordable supplier and from now on all Hedgewitch information sheets and newsletters will be printed on 100% recycled paper.

Buy Products Locally
Buy locally and reduce the amount of energy required to drive your products to your store.

This is a tough one in the city, but I am planning a visit to that local farmers' market I found so that hopefully I can buy less food from Tescos. I already get my fruit and veg in a box, which is delivered by van, but I know they source things as locally as they can within the UK.

Buy Minimally Packaged Goods
Less packaging could reduce your garbage by about 10%. Save 1,200 pounds of carbon dioxide and $1,000 per year.

My fruit and veg box comes in a cardboard box which you return for re-use the following week. I re-use the corrugated card dividers to pack the ceramic pieces in Hedgewitch parcels and I re-use the string for tying up plants in the garden.

Am generally horrified how much packaging everything comes in! I recycle all the card sleeves and re-use the plastic trays for plant saucers and incubators. But finding places to buy less packaged products is something I really want to work on.

Reduce Garbage
Buy products with less packaging and recycle paper, plastic and glass. Save 1,000 lbs. of carbon dioxide per year.

You know, since I've stepped up my recycling/re-using/composting, we've been amazed how little garbage we are putting out now. One black sack a week, rather than one every other day.

Plant a Tree
Trees suck up carbon dioxide and make clean air for us to breathe. Save 2,000 lbs. of carbon dioxide per year.

Hmmmm.. maybe I could think of giving the gift of planting a tree via The Woodland Trust for special occasions?

Unplug Un-Used Electronics
Even when electronic devices are turned off, they use energy. Save over 1,000 lbs of carbon dioxide and $256 per year.

I could (and must) do this!

Buy Organic Food
The chemicals used in modern agriculture pollute the water supply, and require energy to produce.

I do as much as I can, for health reasons, but this is an added incentive.

Bring Cloth Bags to the Market
Using your own cloth bag instead of plastic or paper bags reduces waste and requires no additional energy.

I was given the most fabulous cloth bag by friends of mine for Christmas.. it is tongue-in-cheek and features 'typical London wildlife' (a one-legged pigeon, a large rat etc!) Its great because it folds up small and weighs nothing, so I just keep it stashed in my handbag for any shopping I pick up while I'm out.

Ditch the Plastic
2.5 million individual plastic water bottles are thrown away every hour in the US. Start using a reusable water bottle and just say no to plastic!

I could DEFINITELY do this, as I do sometimes buy small bottles of water when I'm out. I need to drink more water .. I'm really bad at this. I think I will fill a bottle with tap water each morning (whether I'm home or out) for use during the day. When its hot in the summer, I sometimes fill a water bottle with tap water and add a couple of ice-cubes with lemon balm or pineapple sage leaves in them, which is really refreshing.

Snow

They were right about the snow, then ..



It is extraordinarily beautiful ...



.. but I am very worried about my poor plants!