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In: forestry, health

The fungus that wiped out 3.5 billion chestnut trees in the USA has been found for the first time in Britain. Chestnut blight, caused by the fungus Cryphonectria parasitica (C. parasitica), has been confirmed by Forest Research scientists on trees in two small orchards of European sweet chestnut (Castanea sativa).Continue Reading

Sunrise in the Cevennes

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In: photo

Sunrise and valley mist in the Cevennes mountains of south east France.  The forests contain a large proportion of sweet chestnut (Castanea sativa) trees, alongside downy oak (Quercus pubescens) and various pines and spruces. Gabriel HemeryContinue Reading

Maiden sweet chestnut and coppice

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In: forestry, silviculture, trees

This week I had the pleasure of visiting Kent – “England’s garden” – famous for its apple, cherry and cobnut growing.  It is also the centre of Britain’s sweet chestnut coppice industry. Sweet chestnut (Castanea sativa) was introduced to Britain by the Romans some 2000 years ago.  Its attraction wasContinue Reading

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In: arboriculture, forestry, science, trees

Many people are interested in how big a tree’s crown will grow. It can be important in planning gardens, managing street trees, forest silviculture and in assessing the health of ancient trees. Estimating tree height is very imprecise as it is dependent on so many different factors.  However, I wroteContinue Reading

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In: feature, science, trees

There is a very good relationship between a tree’s stem diameter and its crown diameter. This can be used in many different ways by foresters, arboriculturists and landscape planners to plan and model tree growth and …Continue Reading

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In: feature, nature

Several honeys are made from tree flowers including one species that is supposed to be wind-pollinated. Here’s a review of some of the most popular, and some less well known, tree honeys.Continue Reading