The Subtle Changes in a Waking Tree

 I’ve watched the mature willow tree sprout pussy willow


The first catkins opened on the Hazel trees


And the first buds have appeared on the saplings planted last year


And the first green leaves burst into the sunshine (still working out who this is - planted in the Aspen zone but I think the planters had some random trees left as they planted this area last)



But none of this explains the feeling I experience each spring when I watch the skeletal trees on the horizon with a sense of delight and wonder and I don’t want the first leaves to appear. 


It's the same wistfulness I feel in autumn, wanting the colours to hang on before winter. I don’t quite understand this as I love to see the blossom emerge and the air to be full of the buzz of insects again. 


To see the fresh leaves giving the widest range of greens across the canopy.


I thought this was an emotional response; wanting to slow down the rotation of the earth as once everything starts to bloom it is hard to keep up with the many changes that occur at once.

Mountain Chickweed & the  first Calendine of the year pushing through last year’s grass

Marsh St John’s Wort growing in the beck and daffodils on the verge outside the wood

Self seeded ash trees 

I was sitting  gazing at one of my favourite mature trees (Brian Cherry). I was musing on why he looked so handsome just now when he has been without leaves since autumn. 


On closer inspection I could see that each of the branches has swellings where the flowers will emerge in another month’s time. It isn’t obvious and I am surprised how the eye (and the heart) can spot this from afar. 



I look across the valley and realised that those large Oaks will be the same.  Although about 1km away, the sap is rising and each of those trees is a mm or so expanded and collectively that makes a difference to the eye. 


Close up of one of my Oaks:-


This is the moment I want to hold onto; as once the first leaves appear, the detailed shape of the tree trunks and branches will be lost for another season.


Spring greens across the valley

Summer and there is a sameness now - 
less vibrant as the tree's chlorophyll works hard to provide the energy for growth

Autumn colours as the days get shorter

January and the trees are dormant

Not until next year will I perceive the sap rising all around me. I am thinking it’s ‘pre-spring’. I will take a moment now to appreciate this slow unfolding around me.



Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Bluebells Thriving at Bel's Wood

Image
'Bluebells are one of the main biological indicators that scientists use to judge whether a spot is an ancient woodland. An ancient woodland is an area of woods that has been recorded on a map since the year 1600 CE. That’s approximately when maps started being more accurate, so we know that these areas have been filled with trees for approximately 400 years. They are relatively undisturbed by human development and, as a result, foster unique and complex communities of natural life.' (Hants  local  government website).  I have  a map including Bel's Wood dated 1895 (Ordnance Survey Map) and no woodland is showing. There are older maps online which also show that the land and it is always cleared of woodland. Wood would have been used at  Starnthwaite Mill nearby and there is evidence of coppicing of hazel trees in some areas where there is still patches of trees. The presence of bluebells growing on the land indicates that there was a mature woodland here once. ...
Read more

The background rhythm of the Bel’s Wood

Image
I’ve been working hard up at the wood since February - initially laying mulch mats and now deep into bracken management. I’m loving spending so much time up there but have not paid as much attention to the wildlife over the last months. I thought I would collate the footage from the cameras and try and capture the rhythm of the wood as I experience it though videos and stills. These were collected in May and June 2024. Despite the land having been farmed and used for rearing pheasants for regular shoots, there have always been some wild feeling areas that I treasure and I aim to expand them with more  trees and less open space engulfed with bracken and gorse. I have both cameras on the beck just now as it is always a good place to pick up wildlife. Young fox crossing the beck There are always badgers out and about in the evenings. I often hear them but rarely see them in the flesh. I have been hoping to see the otter again this year as he has visited in June the last two years. I t...
Read more

Decisions, decisions......(new video added!)

Image
Having started with a high level plan of course leads to the need for more precise decisions - lots of them. Some of these decisions are not easy as they feel really important with long term consequences and I am new to all this. The more time I spend at Bel’s Wood the more I love it as it is but the purpose is to create a woodland with more trees (to capture carbon from the atmosphere) and support a wider biodiversity so that’s what I am going to do. Trees, trees, trees I have a few mature trees on the site - Cecelia (the sessile oaks) is stand out beauty. I have learned a new tree which I have only identified this spring - there are white beams across the plot. T he new leaves look like magnolia. I have also counted 6 rowan trees so far. These will flower and feed the bees, then produce lovely red berries & provide food for birds. White Beam                    Rowan Cecelia with leaves emerging  Wilhelmina...
Read more