TREES OF ENGLAND
In the first of a new series on native trees, Jan Johnstone pays homage to the oak – Quercus Robur
ASK what tree best symbolises England and nine times out of 10 the answer you receive will be the oak. England has over half the ancient oaks in the world, an old rhyme describing its life cycle stating “three hundred years growing, three hundred years living, three hundred years dying”.
Outnumbering other tree species in England, oaks can live 1,000 years. High Park oak, Blenheim Palace, has an estimated age of 1,050 years, having started to grow around
AD 790. At 800 years old, the
Major Oak in Sherwood Forest is a youngster in comparison.
Another ancient tree at Bowthorpe Park Farm, Lincolnshire, is also thought to be over 1,000 years old. In the 1760s it was said it could accommodate 39 people within its massive hollow trunk.
An oak tree can reach around
131 feet (40 metres). Its distinctive leaves, encircled by four to five broad lobes, appear in mid-May, soon followed by yellow male catkins and small red female buds. Acorns, the fruit of the tree, small knobbly green cups on stalks each holding a nut, turn to a rich brown as the year passes and in autumn drop to the ground, where a variety of wild animals and birds congregate to feast on the bounty.
Look carefully at the tree between May and June and you might spot galls commonly known as “oak apples”. These are formed by the gall wasp laying her eggs on a leaf, which reacts by producing large ball-shaped growths.
Essential for England’s wildlife, the oak supports more species than any other native tree. Bats inhabit holes in the trunk and more than 700 varieties of lichen and some fungi, such as bracket fungus, use the oak as a host. Over 200 species of insect life, including the increasingly rare stag beetle, depend upon it, as does the Purple Hairstreak butterfly that lays its eggs solely on oak leaf buds. Birds including nuthatch, tits, redstarts and woodpeckers nest within its branches, also using it as a food source.
Timber from the oak needs to be at least 150 years old before it can be used. Known for its strength, for centuries it was used when constructing houses, furniture or barrels for storing wine. Royal Navy ships were built from oak, the vessels earning the nickname “the wooden walls of Old England”, and the tree is remembered in the official march of the Royal Navy, Heart of Oak. Today, the timber is mainly used for furniture, flooring, veneers and panelling. Tannins found in oak bark were once used to tan leather, a year-long process, whilst oak galls, ground down and mixed with iron sulphate, produced ink.
Druids (“knowers of the oak trees”) worshipped in oak groves, holding the trees sacred and revering them as symbols of wisdom, strength and endurance. Charles II, escaping from Roundhead forces during the English Civil War (1642-1651), hid from the enemy in an ancient oak tree in the grounds of Boscobel House, Shropshire, remaining until it was safe to continue his journey. When re-instated to the throne, he declared 29 May a holiday – “Oak Apple Day” – to celebrate his lucky escape. Today the original tree is no more, but its descendant marks the spot where it once stood.
Oak leaves, bark and acorns have all been used since time immemorial to heal, a mixture made from the bark known to be both antiseptic and capable of stopping bleeding. It still has a wide use in today’s medicine.
When next out walking our countryside, look out for England’s favourite tree – which offers so much to us that we couldn’t do without it.