A mighty oak
National Tree Week (#NationalTreeWeek – marking the start of the UK winter tree planting season) takes place from today, 23rd Nov to 1st Dec this year and the Tree Council are encouraging us all to become #TreeChampions. In practical terms this amounts to actively planting more of them (in our own gardens or as part of community projects), caring for them and protecting them. Of course in return, we get to live in greener, healthier, more beautiful environment … good for our bodies and mental health.
Since I love trees and woods so much I thought that during National Tree Week I would do a daily tree-related post to celebrate.
Well, my original plan for today had been to dig up a containerised tree from our nursery area and plant it out in the rough grass bit of the garden. I used the word ‘dig’ because I am aware that several of the trees there have rooted into the ground a little (oops), because I’ve been indecisive about where to make their permanent homes. Sadly, since today is wet again I have delayed the task until tomorrow, but in the meantime I need to make a final choice between a sweet chestnut tree, a quince or a Judas tree. They are all about 4/5 yrs old and are raring to spread their roots and branches.
The Hundred Horse Chestnut (Jean-Pierre Houël, 1779). Growing in Sicily, it is reputed to be the oldest Chestnut tree in the world.
I am most tempted by the sweet chestnut, because I adore the tree and nuts, but I know that our neutral to slightly alkaline soil is not ideal. I am slightly hesitant about the quince as a few of its leaves showed signs of rust last year (although it would be healthier in the ground of course). My only reservation about the Judas tree is that I have already planted one on the other side of the garden. One final option under consideration is a younger (and smaller) Katsura tree.
Do you have any information/thoughts that might help me to decide?
On a completely separate note, did you know that it is also #FibonacciDay? Twitter is full of pictures of this pattern occurring in nature. This reminded me that one of my favourite trees at Cambridge Botanical Gardens is a Prunus serrulata ‘Alboplena‘ whose stubby structure looks to have been dictated by a fractal generator. Mathematical series are so interesting, aren’t they?
Prunus serrulata ‘Alboplena‘ in the Rock Garden, Cambridge Botanics
Anyhow, when I visited a couple of weeks ago, the leaves of this cherry tree were turning glorious autumn colours and its wonderful knobbly branches were being revealed as the leaves surrender to gravity.
The stubby, knobbly branches are revealed
Frogend dweller's Blog 
National Tree Week sounds like a good idea. There are some very old trees here on the farm like the old gnarled Mulberry I posted about some time ago. Just think of what they have seen in their lifetime. I am sure you will make the right decision about which tree to plant. Thanks for sharing!
I’ll take a look for those old mulberries on your blog … the gnarlier the better! I am sure that they are still great croppers. I’ve gone ahead with the sweet chestnut as it reminds me of the woods where I grew up. Thanks for reading.
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