saxonaxe
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Another one of those deceptive days, earlier in 'Morning' I posted overcast with rain expected, but the sky cleared and the Sunshine is quite warm, even in a fresh Westerly breeze. In the shelter of the woods it is very Spring like now, after a windy wild night.
Just a few days ago I posted some photos of a Favourite Beech Tree that I pass on one of my regular woodland wanders. I have a great liking for trees, I think of them as individuals as indeed they are, each with it's own shape and form although of a common species. Here comes the flakey bit....For someone who registers 0.00001 on the stress Meter, I just find trees a very calming presence.
This is the tree, with her crop of Beech Polypore funghi growing on the trunk.
Many years ago she dropped a bough as Beeches are so inclined to do and it became entangled in a neighbouring Beech where it has slowly rotted away.
Last night in the stormy weather it was the turn of the old Beech herself to fall.
The powerful scent of the Wild Garlic crushed or uprooted by her fall first alerted me, before I even saw the fallen tree. It filled the wood in the immediate area and in falling she uprooted another younger tree growing close by. The root mass is on the right in the photo, the trunk lies trapped beneath the old Beech.
A close inspection reveals that the heartwood of the old tree was dead, soft and sponge like with just a thin outer layer of living wood keeping her upright until the storm came.
When I was very young this sight would have really upset me, but someone much older and wiser explained Nature's life cycle and although I still find it a sad sight I know she probably lived for 250-300 years and will take probably the same amount of time to return fully to the woodland soil, in the meantime as the old Lady explained to me, " Feeding the forest folk"
I know that properly dried punk wood when charred in the same manner as Char Cloth makes great tinder, so with the old Beech's permission I took some home and after a suitable drying period I too will see that the old fallen tree is still of use.
Just a few days ago I posted some photos of a Favourite Beech Tree that I pass on one of my regular woodland wanders. I have a great liking for trees, I think of them as individuals as indeed they are, each with it's own shape and form although of a common species. Here comes the flakey bit....For someone who registers 0.00001 on the stress Meter, I just find trees a very calming presence.
This is the tree, with her crop of Beech Polypore funghi growing on the trunk.
Many years ago she dropped a bough as Beeches are so inclined to do and it became entangled in a neighbouring Beech where it has slowly rotted away.
Last night in the stormy weather it was the turn of the old Beech herself to fall.
The powerful scent of the Wild Garlic crushed or uprooted by her fall first alerted me, before I even saw the fallen tree. It filled the wood in the immediate area and in falling she uprooted another younger tree growing close by. The root mass is on the right in the photo, the trunk lies trapped beneath the old Beech.
A close inspection reveals that the heartwood of the old tree was dead, soft and sponge like with just a thin outer layer of living wood keeping her upright until the storm came.
When I was very young this sight would have really upset me, but someone much older and wiser explained Nature's life cycle and although I still find it a sad sight I know she probably lived for 250-300 years and will take probably the same amount of time to return fully to the woodland soil, in the meantime as the old Lady explained to me, " Feeding the forest folk"
I know that properly dried punk wood when charred in the same manner as Char Cloth makes great tinder, so with the old Beech's permission I took some home and after a suitable drying period I too will see that the old fallen tree is still of use.
