Woolley Firs Tree Trail

The flowers, leaves, bark and acorns of the English oak support more life than any other native tree species in the UK -  from foxes and fungi to bats and beetles, over 300 creatures live in or on our English oaks. The soft leaves break down easily in autumn and form a rich leaf mould that supports many invertebrates.

Oaks have huge cultural significance. For example, Druids practised rituals in oak groves and cherished the mistletoe that grows in oak-tree branches. The word ‘Druid’ even translates as ‘oak-seer’. It is also linked with royalty: ancient kings and Roman Emperors wore crowns of oak leaves.

Its wood has been prized since prehistoric times. Until iron came into widespread use in the middle of the 19th century, oak was the preferred timber for ship building - thousands of oaks were needed to build just one warship.

First introduced to Britain in the 1600s, this tree is often mistaken for a maple due to the shape of its leaf. The tree's fragrant resin, which is referenced in its common name, exudes from the tree when wounded. The gum has been used as incense, perfume and to make a type of chewing gum.

The gum also has antiseptic and antibacterial properties. In traditional Native American medicine, the resin and inner bark were used to treat diarrhoea, and, topically, as a salve for wounds and skin irritations.   The Cherokee and other tribes drank the resin as a tea to calm nervousness.

There are four other species in the genus Liquidambar, but they are all native to Asia.

Famed for its fruit, the conker, the magnificent horse chestnut originally comes from Greece and other parts of south-eastern Europe. It was introduced to Great Britain in 1616. Its name probably refers to the practice, in times gone by, of feeding conkers to sick horses. However, if eaten, conkers are actually poisonous to many animals, including horses. Deer are one of the only mammals that can eat them without ill-effect.

In 2002, a species of leaf-mining moth arrived in Britain from continental Europe and has had widespread and noticeable impacts on this tree - the leaves of horse chestnut trees are often seen to turn brown much earlier than most other deciduous species and within the affected leaves, the tunnels of the tiny moth caterpillars can be seen.

Giant redwoods (or giant sequoias) are the most massive individual trees on Earth. The 19th century American conservationist John Muir wrote this ‘big tree is nature’s forest masterpiece and so far as I know, the greatest of living things…almost godlike’ in its structure. Take a moment to take in the immensity of this tree. Around twenty people would be needed to hold hands and make a complete circle around the largest giant redwood in the world which grows in Sequoia National Park in California! How many people would you guess it take for this (smaller) giant redwood?

For such a giant tree, the cones are surprisingly small. They are bright grass-green when they first grow and are patterned with closely-fitting diamond-shapes - can you find one on the ground around where you are standing? The tiny seeds grow inside the cone and when released their tiny ‘wings’ enable the wind to carry them large distances from the tree.

The oldest known giant redwood is around 3,200 years old, making this one of the longest-lived species of all living things (if you would to see another species of long-lived tree on this trail, find our yew).

A species of maple from central Europe and southwestern Asia, the sycamore may have been brought by Romans or introduced in the 1500s, but no one really knows exactly when the sycamore first arrived in this country, or who brought it.

The sycamore is seen by some as a weed because it out-competes native trees, and its seeds sprout new trees very successfully. However, it provides food and shelter for many species, including aphids that leave behind their tacky honeydew. One of the most beautiful features of mature sycamore trees is their bark. The thick flaking crust is curiously patterned and textured, providing thousands of little crevices for insects.

Sycamore timber is hard and strong, pale cream and with a fine grain, and is excellent for carving. It is used to make furniture and kitchenware, such as ladles and wooden spoons as the wood does not taint or stain the food.

Monumental and majestic, beech trees are associated with the Chiltern Hills, where they were planted in large numbers for furniture making. To wander beneath the canopy of a beech woodland, the cathedral-like branches spreading upwards, is an awe-inspiring experience.

Due to its dense canopy and thick carpet of fallen leaves, only specialist, shade-tolerant plants can survive in beech woodland. Rarer plant species associated with it include box, bluebells, coralroot bittercress and a variety of orchids, including red helleborine. Beech woodland also provides an important habitat for many butterflies, particularly in open glades and along woodland rides. The leaf litter provides a buffet for various species of fungi.

Beech fruit, a kind of nut called mast, provides food for mice, voles, squirrels and birds. In times gone by, the energy rich beech mast was fed to pigs, and in times of famine was eaten by humans too.

Related to the magnolia, the North American tulip tree, Liriodendron tulipifera, was one of the very first tree species to be brought over the Atlantic from America to Britain in the 1600s. It is identifiable by its unusual four-lobed leaf. The flowers of the tree resemble tulips and give the tree its name. It is an ancient plant type and the flowers are adapted for pollination by beetles. However, in modern-day America, it is popular with beekeepers as over its lifespan, one flower can produce around a tablespoon of nectar.

Native Americans used the bark to make a medicinal tea for treating typhoid and malaria. The inner bark was useful in treating rheumatism and arthritis. The tea from the bark, when boiled down, is also useful as a cough syrup.

The yew is a conifer with unusual cones that look like berries and which provide food for birds. The seed inside the bright red cone or ‘aril’ is poisonous, and Shakespeare wrote about Macbeth concocting a deadly brew which included “slips of yew, silvered in the moon’s eclipse”. However, the seed passes through birds’ digestive systems without harming them.

Like holly, yews have male flowers on one tree and female flowers on another tree. Technically they are called ‘dioecious’ from the Greek meaning ‘two households’.

Yew trees are incredibly long-lived and though difficult to age accurately, some individuals are listed amongst the longest living organisms on earth, including one tree in Wales and one in Ireland that are up to 5,000 years old. Yew trees also have incredible properties of regeneration. Drooping branches of old yew trees can root and form new trunks where they touch the ground. Thus the yew came to symbolise death and resurrection and was held sacred by the Druids in pre-Christian times.

Piles of deadwood provide habitat for about 1,700 different invertebrates (beetles, spiders, woodlice and other minibeasts) in the UK. A small number of these creatures eat the wood directly, but most have to wait until fungi and bacteria break it down. Fungi spread thin filaments through the wood, causing the release of locked up nutrients.

Many beetles rely on deadwood for the development of their larvae. These are known as saproxylic beetles, derived from the Greek sapros meaning ‘rotten’ and xylon meaning ‘wood'. By burrowing into wood as they go they are also afforded some protection from predators. In all, around 650 UK beetle species are thought to require deadwood at some point in their life cycles.

Look out for our stag beetle ‘loggeries’ where we have dug vertical logs part-way into the ground - underground, the rotting wood provides food for stag beetle larvae that can remain feeding for up to seven years.

Coast redwoods are the tallest living things - one individual in California named ‘Hyperion’ is 115m high and is considered the tallest tree on Earth.

The thick, fibrous bark of coast redwoods is extremely fire-resistant; it can grow to at least 30cm thick and protects mature trees from fire damage. In addition, redwoods contain little flammable resin. If damaged by fire, a redwood readily sprouts new branches or even an entirely new crown, and if the parent tree is killed, new buds sprout from its base. Fires can benefit redwoods by causing substantial mortality in competing species while having only minor effects on redwood. Redwood seeds can germinate more successfully in burned areas.

Box produces a very hard light-coloured wood, making it perfect for detailed carving. Consequently, it was traditionally used for making printing blocks and white chess pieces. It can be cut repeatedly without suffering harm, and is often used for topiary for that reason. You may have seen box bushes cut into shapes. A slow-growing tree, this uncut specimen might be as old as Hasker House, the building behind you.

In 2011, a new pest was detected in Britain’s gardens - box-tree caterpillars. They feed on the leaves within the webbing they make over the foliage and can completely defoliate box plants in days. Already established in the London area and surrounding counties, they are quickly spreading and are likely to be a major pest problem in the future. However, they only eat box leaves so shouldn’t be confused with other caterpillars.

Katsura is native to Japan where its durable timber was used to make temples and, more recently, the body frame of the first mass-produced cars (Datsun). It is well known for its delightful scent in autumn, reminiscent of burnt sugar or caramel. At Woolley Firs, it is known as the toffee apple tree and the German common name translates as gingerbread tree. As the leaves end their life cycle they produce maltose, or malt sugar, which gives them this distinct smell. The colour is beautiful too as leaves turn yellow, orange and pink. Tiny bright red flowers appear in spring, just before the leaves grow back.

Ginkgo is a beautiful and strange tree - now the sole survivor of an ancient group of species of deciduous trees which would have been grazed by dinosaurs over 270 million years ago. The imprints of leaves with the unique 'bi-lobed' shape are found as ancient fossils.

The word 'ginkgo' translates as 'duck’s-foot' referring to the leaf shape. Usually, trees can be divided into 'broadleaf' or 'conifer', but it is so unusual and ancient that it is neither broadleaf nor conifer and is the only living connection between ferns and conifers.

It is widely planted in towns and cities as it is highly resistant to pollution, pests and diseases, but generally only male trees are grown, as female trees produce fleshy seeds that smell like rancid butter.