The Little Book of Planting Trees by Max Adams

Author:Max Adams [Adams, Max]
Language: eng
Format: epub
ISBN: 9781788546263
Publisher: Head of Zeus

Britain’s other native trees: a challenge

Why not try to plant and grow a specimen of each of the native trees of the British Isles? A medium-sized school or a large garden could easily accommodate all thirty-eight of these or so, to make a wonderful collection from which children can learn about tree biology and adaptation, ecological history and the practical skills of planting and nurturing.

The following is a list of the other native trees that have not been fully described above.

♦ Box (Buxus sempervirens ): often seen as topiary or as a closely pruned hedge.

♦ Midland hawthorn (Crataegus laevigata ): a now-rare cousin of the common hawthorn.

♦ Hornbeam (Carpinus betulus ): widely coppiced in southern England for its very hard wood and commonly seen as a planted hedge, it has leaves similar to those of beech but more ribbed. Its seeds are distinctively triple-winged, like birds’ feet.

♦ Spindle (Euonymus europaeus ): a large bush of hedgerows, with distinctive pink flowers.

♦ Ash (Fraxinus excelsior ): cannot now be planted because of the deadly Chalara fraxinea fungus but self-seeds abundantly. Winged seeds.

♦ Juniper (Juniperus communis ): one of three native conifers, low-growing, now increasingly rare; produces berries (strictly speaking, cones) used in flavouring gin.

♦ Crab apple (Malus sylvestris ): our native apple; a valuable source of pollen for bees as well as fleshy fruit for birds and mammals, used as stock for grafting apple cultivars. Will grow from seed.

♦ White poplar (Populus alba ): a very fast-growing, tall tree which produces abundant suckers; unsuitable for gardens.

♦ Black poplar (Populus nigra ): a magnificent but endangered native woodland tree. Grown from cuttings.

♦ Aspen (Populus tremula ): a tall tree of damp places with trembling foliage. Grown from cuttings.

♦ Plymouth pear (Pyrus cordata ): very rare; it bears small, round fleshy fruit.

♦ Buckthorn (Rhamnus cathartica ): a bush of scrubby woods, with black berries.

♦ Elder (Sambucus nigra ): a shrubby tree of hedgerows and gardens with exuberant, aromatic cream flower clusters and bright black autumn berries. Grown from seed.

♦ Wild service tree (Sorbus torminalis ): rare, highly distinctive tree with maple-like leaves and small pear-shaped fruit.

♦ Common lime (Tilia x europaea ): a large, elegant tree with heart-shaped leaves; commonly sends up new shoots from its base.

♦ Small-leaved lime (Tilia cordata ): a frequently coppiced tree in medieval woods. Fleshy fruits.

♦ Large-leaved lime (Tilia platyphyllos ): the rarest of its native cousins.

♦ Wych elm (Ulmus glabra ): a large, once-common tree with distinctive flat yellow seed cases that can be collected in summer and planted immediately.

♦ Guelder rose (Viburnum opulus ): a pretty shrub of hedge and woodland edge with bright red translucent berries.

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