💚🌿🌲🌳Walking through the woods is always good for the soul. To find old paths where trees stand as guardians…..and rocks speak quiet memories of times gone by where those have walked before.
Our feet that touch the earth…..our breath upon the air…..the brush of branch and sound of forest’s sway…..in gentle breeze that warms the heart and chases cares away. For here we feel alive…..unfettered, free and wild…..each stone…..each leaf…..each cloud….that drifts above…..entwined in nature’s dance…..beyond all time and circumstance. For here we find the life in everything…..and here we hear the truths that nature brings…..🌳🌲🌿💚
Deck the halls with boughs of holly… but why holly? Where does this tradition come from?
Once again, we turn to the pagans. Both the Celts and the Romans brought evergreen plants into the home during winter, believing that their abilities to remain green throughout the cold months was magical and promised the return of spring. Christianity adopted the practice and holly was used as a representation of the Crown of Thorns, with the red berries symbolising the drops of Christ’s blood.
And so the tradition continued throughout the centuries – from 16th Century German wreaths to Victorian drawings on Christmas cards, the humble holly has been a hallmark of the festive season.
As Henry VIII wrote in his Christmas carol:
Green groweth the holly, So doth the ivy. Though winter blasts blow never so high, Green groweth the holly.
Pictured below is a Ilex x altaclerensis ‘Camelliifolia’ and this particular type of holly is a hybrid which originated in Highclere estate. It has smooth leaves, however they do turn spikey when they have been attacked or pruned!
So, this year let’s continue tradition and deck the halls with boughs of holly, fa la la la la, la la la la. 🥂
Post from Chelsea Physic Garden, London’s oldest botanic garden.
Mistletoe (Viscum album) has been a Christmas staple for centuries, but where does this festive tradition really come from?
The Ancient Greeks used mistletoe as a cure for many ailments, from menstrual cramps to spleen disorders. Celtic Druids regarded mistletoe as a sacred symbol of vivacity, as it was able to survive the winter, and hung it up for luck. In Norse Mythology, after her son had been shot with an arrow made from mistletoe wood, the goddess Figg declared that she would kiss anyone who walked beneath a mistletoe plant, in order to stop it being used as a weapon ever again.
But it’s in the 18th century that the practice of kissing beneath the mistletoe at Christmas time began among the ‘lower orders’ and made its way up the social hierarchies, becoming a beloved tradition by the time the Victorians were solidifying what we now recognise as Christmas.
Quite a folkloric feat for a semi-parasitic plant that survives by feeding off the water and sugars stolen from larger trees, a romantic tale for a plant whose seeds are mainly spread by birds wiping their excrement onto branches, and a lovely saga for a plant who’s ingestion is poisonous to both humans and animals!
So here’s to mistletoe, one of the most unlikely heroes of our Christmas canon.
Post from Chelsea Physic Garden, London’s oldest botanic garden.
66 Royal Hospital Road Chelsea, London SW3 4HS Tel: 020 7352 5646 enquiries@chelseaphysicgarden.co.uk
Escape to the woods this Christmas and help protect over 1,000 healthy havens.
Become a member There’s no better way to support The Woodland Trust than by becoming a member. You’ll be joining a movement of more than 300,000 like-minded people and helping us create healthy habitats for people and wildlife.
We are thrilled to be named as one of the National Trust’s 49 recipients of a ‘Trees of Hope’ Sycamore Gap sapling 🌳💚!
This big reveal takes place on the anniversary of the felling of the much-loved tree and our Biblins Youth Campsite will be the location for our sapling which was grown from the original trees seed.
Biblins is situated in mature ancient woodlands which are highly valued by visiting groups as well as members of the public who explore the numerous footpaths that weave through the site and immerse themselves in nature 🍂🐝. The site is a perfect location for one of the saplings where young Woodcraft Folk participants who were very upset to hear of the destruction of the Sycamore Gap Tree can learn about the importance of nature conservation.
Trees have been an important symbol in Woodcraft Folk’s 100-year history. The charity’s nature and environment principles encourage understanding, enjoyment and protection of our environment both locally and globally amongst our young members.
The arrival of the Sycamore Gap sapling represents hope and we can’t think of a more significant way to celebrate our centenary than planting the sapling as we look ahead to the future of the next 100 years of our youth work.
From Bolivia to Indonesia, deforestation continues apace.
Deforestation continued last year at a rate far beyond pledges to end the practice by 2030.
Forests nearly the size of Ireland were lost in 2023, according to two dozen research organisations, NGOs and advocacy groups, with 6.37 million hectares (15.7 million acres) of trees felled and burned.
This “significantly exceeded” levels that would have kept the world on track to eliminate deforestation by the end of the decade, a commitment made in 2021 by more than 140 leaders.
Forests are home to 80 percent of the world’s terrestrial plant and animal species and crucial for regulating water cycles and sequestering CO2, the main greenhouse gas responsible for global warming.
“Globally, deforestation has gotten worse, not better, since the beginning of the decade,” said Ivan Palmegiani, a biodiversity and land use consultant at Climate Focus and lead author of the “Forest Declaration Assessment” report.
“We’re only six years away from a critical global deadline to end deforestation, and forests continue to be chopped down, degraded, and set ablaze at alarming rates.”
In 2023, 3.7 million hectares of tropical primary forest — particularly carbon rich and ecologically biodiverse environments — disappeared, a figure that should have fallen significantly to meet the 2030 objective.
SOYA AND NICKEL In high-risk regions, researchers pointed to backsliding in Bolivia and in Indonesia.
The report said there was an “alarming rise” in deforestation in Bolivia, which jumped 351 percent between 2015 and 2023.
The “trend shows no sign of abating”, it added, with forests largely cleared for agriculture, notably for soya but also beef and sugar.
In Indonesia, deforestation slumped between 2020-2022 but started rising sharply last year.
Ironically, that is partly down to demand for materials often seen as eco-friendly, such as viscose for clothing, and a surge in nickel mining for electric vehicle batteries and renewable energy technologies
There was better news from Brazil.
While it remains the country with the highest deforestation rates in the world, it has made key progress.
The situation has significantly improved in the Amazon, which has benefited from protective measures put in place by President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva.
However, in the Cerrado, a key tropical savannah below the Amazon, deforestation has increased.
DEGRADED FORESTS
The report also highlights the role of logging, road building and fires in forest degradation, when land is damaged but not razed entirely.
In 2022, the last year data was available, a forest area twice the size of Germany was degraded.
Erin Matson, senior consultant at Climate Focus, and co-author of the report, said “strong policies and strong enforcement” were needed.
“To meet global forest protection targets, we must make forest protection immune to political and economic whims,” she said.
The report comes in the wake of the European Commission’s proposal last week to postpone by a year (to the end of 2025) the entry into force of its anti-deforestation law, despite protests from NGOs.
“We have to fundamentally rethink our relationship with consumption and our models of production to shift away from a reliance on over exploiting natural resources,” said Matson.
Original Bramley apple tree is under threat: 200-year-old source of one of Britain’s most favourite cooking apples is hit by disease, campaigners say Henry Merryweather, a 17-year-old boy saw a gardener carrying apples. He asked Matthew Bramley, the owner of the tree, if he could take a seedling
A campaign has been launched to raise funds for the original Bramley apple tree, which was planted more than 200 years ago.
The tree was sown by Mary Ann Brailsford in the garden of her parents’ home in Church Street, Southwell, Nottinghamshire, between 1809 and 1815.
Almost 50 years later, a 17-year-old boy named Henry Merryweather came across a gardener carrying some of the apples and asked where they had been grown.
By this time, the garden containing the apple tree belonged to a butcher called Matthew Bramley, who gave Mr Merryweather permission to take cuttings of the ‘Bramley Seedling’.
Since then, the Bramley apple has become one of Britain’s most popular cooking apples – with more than 300 Bramley growers in England and about 83,000 tonnes grown annually in the UK
The original Bramley tree was cited as one of the 50 Great British Trees in the Queen’s Golden Jubilee in 2002, and it was one of 70 ancient trees to be dedicated to the Queen for the Platinum Jubilee in 2022.
The crowdfunder effort to raise funds to help save the tree has so far raced £2,614.
However, it has been affected by honey fungus which Nottingham Trent University – the current owner of the tree – says will eventually lead it to perish.
Dan Llywelyn Hall, who was the youngest artist to paint a portrait of the late Queen, has now unveiled new works of the tree entitled Swansong Of The Mother Bramley.
His pieces are part of a campaign, supported by the family of Henry Merryweather, to raise funds to support the tree.
Mr Llywelyn Hall, from Wales, said: ‘My painting is a last hurrah of the Bramley as it surges skyward in a four season blossom and a bounty of apples.’
Donations raised by the campaign will go towards a tree survey and ground work to remove vegetation and the honey fungus, and improve support structures to prevent any collapse, he said.
An information point for visitors, outlining the history of the tree, will be installed, campaigners say. Donations will also go towards an ongoing landscaping programme and garden improvement.
Delia Smith said: ‘I could not live in a country that could not supply me with Bramley apples. I have recipes for Bramley apples where nothing else will do.
‘The tart flavour is unique, so is the fluffiness. I love them just as they are cored, brushed with butter and very slowly baked in the oven with just a slit around the waist.
‘For the best concentrated apple flavour, no other recipe can match this one.’
Celia Stevens, the granddaughter of Henry Merryweather, called for improved public access and awareness of the tree which is currently situated in a private garden.
She said she had previously asked for a clone of the tree to be planted near the original but this had not yet happened.
Mrs Stevens said: ‘It is so disappointing that with its two prestigious awards that the surrounding garden in no way reflects what the Bramley has done for this country both locally and nationally, and that includes food during the Second World War.’
Nottingham Trent University said issues about the care of the tree had not previously been raised and it had not been consulted about the fundraising campaign.
A spokesperson told the PA news agency: ‘We are incredibly proud to be custodian of the original Bramley apple tree and recognise its significance to the local and wider community.’
The tree had been affected by honey fungus before the university became its custodian, having purchased two cottages for student accommodation, and has ‘already outlived its natural lifespan by quite some time’.
‘Despite this, the tree still bears fruit and the university continues to work hard to look after it to try to prolong its life and maintain it in the most appropriate way for a tree of this age and condition,’ the spokesperson said.
Genetic material has been taken from the tree for analysis to establish what gives the Bramley its ‘unique characteristics’, they added.
The university said the garden was opened for members of the public upon request and for events such as the Bramley Apple Festival which is taking place on October 26 this year.
Visitors from across the world – particularly Japan where there is a fondness for Bramley apples – will attend the festival.
Mr Llywelyn Hall’s piece can be viewed in the Southwell Minister and will be auctioned to create the fund for the tree.
Treebeard or as known as Fangorn in Sindarin, is a tree-giant character in Tolkien’s legendarium. He is an Ent, and Gandalf claims that he is the oldest creature still alive on Middle-earth that walks beneath the sun. He has given his name to the old Forest of Fangorn, where he resides. It is located near the Misty Mountains’ southernmost point near the Gap of Rohan. The mountains constituted Fangorn’s western boundary. Near the southwest corner of the woodland was Saruman’s stronghold, Isengard, at the foot of the mountain range. He is said to be roughly fourteen feet tall and have an oak or beech-like appearance. Treebeard encounters two Hobbits from the Shire, Merry Brandybuck and Pippin Took, in The Two Towers. This encounter turns out to have ramifications that greatly advance the plot and make possible the events of The Return of the King.
Tree Weaver 