Big Beasts in the Wood

In olden days woods were scary places. I mean really old days when there were mammoths, bears, boars, bison, tarpans and aurochs roaming and browsing. Tarpans? Aurochs? The original wild horse was the tarpan, the original wild cow was the auroch. These big beasts were perfectly capable of disrupting woods: knocking down trees (modern elephants

Trees I Have Known

The by road that goes from Marlingford Mill past the church out towards Colton is flanked by unruly, wildly curving oak trees. Next time I go there I will get off my bike, walk slowly and see them properly. Once there were three black poplars on the green at Bawburgh by the river. I remember

Trees in the Slow Lane

Trees live their lives in the slow lane. Our oldest oaks in the local woods are perhaps 250 years old. They are in their prime with possibly centuries to look forward to. They will only be really old by the time they are 700. So they have time to take things slowly, perhaps growing a