Do you have a favourite tree? We don’t mean a favourite species of tree, but an individual specimen that you particularly admire. The Parish Grasslands Project is putting together a guide to some of the most notable local trees, and we would like your help. We are asking for suggestions of likely candidates within the parishes of St Briavels and Hewelsfield & Brockweir. The tree guide will include photographs and a map showing the location of each tree, as well as notes about the ecology and special features of the trees.
There has been a sudden upsurge of interest in trees locally, sparked by the campaign to buy the 100-acre Lindors Wood for the community and restore it as vibrant broadleaf woodland, like it used to be.. That campaign was launched in the early spring, at a meeting that filled the St Briavels Assembly Rooms. The following evening in the Assembly Rooms, Garden Society members heard a talk about Severn Treescapes, the project by the Wildlife Trusts of Gloucestershire, Herefordshire and Worcestershire to link up woodland from the Wye to the Wyre Forest, in order to form a continuous corridor for wildlife.
Trees are a vital part of the environment that surrounds us. They are beautiful, they soak up carbon, they provide homes for hundreds of wildlife species, they are a frame of reference for us as they change through the seasons. We live in a heavily wooded landscape with some ancient trees surviving from former wooded commons of The Hudnalls, The Bearse and Hewelsfield. There are remnants of orchards that kept our public houses supplied with ciders and perry. Other exotic trees are more recent Victorian or Edwardian additions to our gardens, churchyards and villagescapes. So please let us know your nominations among the trees of the parishes, and the reasons for your choice. There are a host of potential reasons. It could be because a tree is a particularly fine example of an individual species, and we do want to include good examples of the native species found locally. But equally a tree could be be nominated because of its rarity, or its historical significance, local stories, or the uses of its products, such as timber, fruit, nuts, or the numbers of other living things it supports. Or it might simply have some particular personal significance for you. Whatever the reason, we want to hear your tree nominations. In the first instance send an email to parishgrasslandsproject@gmail.com telling us about your chosen tree, including a description of where it is (and OS grid reference or What Three Words would be useful!). Send a photo if you have one. We would prefer the trees to be accessible from footpaths and lanes. If they are on private land they must be easily seen from public rights of way – we will not promote trees in a way that might encourage trespassing or voyeurism!
We are waiting to hear your suggestions for which individual trees to include in the guide. And don’t forget that we are also asking for photographs on the theme of biodiversity for use in the calendar we plan to produce for next year