There is a strange pleasure to be derived from donning your wellies on a
bright autumnal day and going for a walk in the countryside. There is usually
a slightly
cold but bracing feel about autumnal days.
The main attraction for me is the trees and in particular the colour of their
leaves. Birds are scarce, Butterflies are even rarer, and only a few Wildflowers
are blooming. Strangely there are nearly always some summer flowers in bloom
in sheltered spots. Some white dead nettle seem to get a second flush and are
thriving when they should be dormant. Although I am not an expert I think this
is not too bad for plants which exist in a small micro climate on their own.
There is also an abundance of berries this year. We should all be able to obtain
a piece of holly with berries for our Xmas pud.
I like to walk everyday in autumn just to enjoy the changing colours of the leaves
and the improving views of the countryside.
There are so many different species of trees around the town that I have had
to buy a book to identify them. Leaves are the main diagnostic feature but the
bark, shape and size are also important. My book stated that a tree could be
aged by measuring its girth, five feet from the ground, in inches, and that is
its age.
The same book stated that Lime and Wild Cherry are native British trees which
I find hard to believe. It also stated that the Sycamore was a Maple tree which
I thought made sense after looking at the leaf.
This year, most trees have retained their leaves for longer than normal and some
of the leaves have remained green until November. Only a few trees, like the
Willow and Poplar, have shed their leaves before the end of October. In one sense
they have become picturesque and stark. The branches have added a new colour
to the skyline.
Nowadays there are so many hybrids or different types of Willow and Poplar and
cross pollination that it is impossible to accurately identify a tree. Further,
what I know as Goat and Crack Willows may have different names in the South.
And what I call a White Poplar did not exist in the county where I was brought
up. I was told White Poplars used to be grown in this area for Bryant and May
to make matchsticks and now farmers grow Willows to make electricity.
Most of the common native British trees can be found around the town. There is
no need to visit an Arboretum like Westonbirt to see wonderful mature trees in
splendid autumnal colours. Although rare trees and trees from other countries
can be seen in Arboretums - and the colours are particularly splendid because
of the groupings or specialisation by the foresters.
I know there are some rare trees in the area – there is a Black Poplar
near Lambourn but most of the trees are common and therefore easy to identify.
Perhaps parents should take their children on a tree survey of the area. I don’t
think this has been done and it would be interesting to know all the trees in
Hungerford.
My favourite walks in the town are on the marshes and the common. The marsh walk
takes in the church yard with all its splendid trees.
Unfortunately, I am only confident that I can recognise common trees and confess
that each autumn I visit the arboretum at Westonbirt, a few miles north of junction
18 on the M4, just to learn about trees and have a good lunch at the Hare and
Hounds pub near the entrance. On the last visit, on October 25th, I learnt that
leaves change colour before dropping off because the chlorophyll degenerates
through lack of sunshine. Most people know that Trees cope with a temperate climate
by shedding their leaves and closing down in anticipation of cold weather, but
I was surprised that a conifer, the Larch, also sheds its needles in winter for
the same reason. Also we only have one native Pine tree, the Scots Pine, all
the others have been introduced.
Hawkeye