Tree Walks in Dorset

01/05/2024

What you can see now ... focus on sycamore ...

24/04/2024

And if you haven't yet seen it, check out Dorchester Ghost Walk 😃

Dorchester Ghost Walks has just completed its 25th year of entertaining residents and visitors alike.

23/04/2024

Join me on a Riverside Tree Walk - Tuesday 14th May, 6-8pm - click on event link for details and booking

We will be looking at riverside trees easily accessible from the town centre and determining how to identify them.

23/04/2024

Join me on an Urban Tree Walk - Sunday 12th May 2-4pm - see link for details to book

Discover the hidden beauty of Dorchester's urban trees on a guided walking tour!

23/04/2024

Dorchester Walking Festival is coming up 11th to 19th May - click on the link to see all events. I will be running two tree walks, on Sunday 12th May and Tuesday 14th May.

Experience the beauty of Dorchester and the Jurassic Coast at the Dorchester Walking Festival, 11th - 19th May, 2024. Lace up your boots and get ready to explore stunning landscapes and the rich history of this iconic region of Dorset.

24/03/2024

Something is a-stirring in those hedgerows and trees ...

20/03/2024

There was an article recently in the news about giant redwoods (sequoias). Whilst the estimate is that 80,000 are flourishing in their native California, it is believed some 500,000 are doing well here in the UK! Here is our local one in Dorchester, there is another great example in Bournemouth's Upper Gardens.

12/03/2024

Blossom, blossom everywhere! Most of the small white blossom out now is a form of cherry plum blossom ... out very shortly will be blackthorn blossom.

04/03/2024

So what should you be seeing out and about at the moment?

01/02/2024

Goodness ... it has been a while, during which we have had a few months off and done some lovely road trips. These included the Bournemouth Gardens Tree Walk, Minterne Magna Gardens, and Westonbirt Arboretum. All were worthwhile visits for tree lovers!

29/09/2023

I just wanted to say a big thank you to everyone who has supported the Dorchester Tree Walk, either by attending or liking and sharing this page. It has been a joy to share any knowledge I have, and I really enjoyed the experience, learning lots along the way. Dorchester Tree Walk will be back next year, I am thinking of starting around May time as there is lots to see then, and possibly with a focus on riverside habitats. If you do have any suggestions or comments, please do feel free to contact me by private message via this site.

I will keep updating this page with tree related items, suggestions and tips to keep us going over the winter months. Happy tree-watching!

29/09/2023

Luckily the rain held off long enough for us to complete the last Dorchester Tree Walk of the season! During this, we witnessed that the magnolia tree in Borough Gardens is flowering again. I found this very surprising as have read that trees will not be fooled by warm weather conditions - they are able to measure daylight hours and behave accordingly. Attached is an article that seems to say that magnolias can indeed flower twice, and that it is not necessarily a worry. It may also point to ideal conditions in the gardens, in that the tree is watered well throughout the year.

Magnolia is evergreen or deciduous shrubs marked by a bowl or star-shaped flowers. It belongs to a large genus of about two hundred ten flowering plant species in the family Magnoliaceae. It is an ancient genus known to appear before the evolution of bees. The flowers have evolved with time to encou...

25/09/2023

It's the last one of the season this Wednesday! Put on your wellies or sunhat (whichever is appropriate!) and join me at 4pm ☺️

21/09/2023

What a day yesterday was!! Unsurprisingly, given the weather, I had no takers for the tree walk 🧐 unless they were hiding! But I always turn up just in case, as one week 4 people came despite the rain! Hope to see you next week 27th September for the last Dorchester Tree Walk of the season!!

18/09/2023

Only two Wednesdays left! Am hoping the weather will improve! Please like and share, thank you.

18/09/2023

On last week's tree walk, whilst looking at a tulip tree, someone wondered if it was the same as a handkerchief tree. Having done a little research, they are different trees but I also found this article on the subject. I would like to see a handkerchief tree in flower now!

When the flowers are disturbed by a light breeze, they give the impression of a flock of white birds gently fluttering their wings, says John Lydon, as he admires an unusual tree in the grounds of Leeds university

11/09/2023

This coming Wednesday ... and it's looking like the dry weather will hold! Feel free to like and share 🙂

04/09/2023

Looks like a scorcher this week ... but there will be shade under those trees - join me on Wednesday for Dorchester Tree Walk! Feel free to like and share :)

31/08/2023

Following on from yesterday's tree walk, I have done a bit of research and have a few bits of info to pass on.

We discussed where magnolias were native to, and wild magnolias are native to Asia and the Americas, more prolific in central America.

Someone said they had read the London Plane is of no benefit to wildlife, which I thought unlikely, but actually technically the London Plane only benefits 1 native insect species. This makes sense, because introduced species will score low in this area, as they have not had the millions of years to build up a relationship with native insect species. However, any tree will benefit other forms of wildlife such as birds and small mammals. Here are links on two interesting articles on the London Plane; the link to John Tradescant is discussed in both, but I think more recent thought favours him not being responsible for the London Plane's introduction here.

Happy reading, and thank you for supporting Dorchester Tree Walk!
https://www.southbankcentre.co.uk/blog/articles/city-and-tree-story-london-planes
https://www.woodlandtrust.org.uk/trees-woods-and-wildlife/british-trees/a-z-of-british-trees/london-plane/?gclid=EAIaIQobChMIuOf0-MaGgQMVReztCh1kJA16EAAYASAAEgLjLPD_BwE&gclsrc=aw.ds

29/08/2023

Join me tomorrow - and every Wednesday in September - for the Dorchester Tree Walk. It may even be sunny!

24/08/2023

On yesterday's Dorchester Tree Walk, we touched on the topic of ash dieback. It is indeed caused by a fungus, one that is spread through air-borne spores. This Woodland Trust article gives a comprehensive idea of what to look out for.

Ash dieback, also known as Chalara dieback of ash, is a serious disease that is killing ash across Europe. Find out what causes it and how to spot it.

21/08/2023

Hope you have been watching "Earth", the story of our planet, with Chris Packham. This episode on how plant life evolved onto land is particularly pertinent to the story of trees!

How plant life turned the Earth from a barren rock into a vibrant green world.

21/08/2023

Dorchester Tree Walk - every Wednesday in August & September

14/08/2023

It's looking good for the weather this Wednesday!

07/08/2023

So after last week, I am cautiously optimistic about the weather this Wednesday! 😎

31/07/2023

Just a reminder for this Wednesday 😊 the weather is looking mixed, so bring your brolly & waterproofs 😆 feel free to share with friends, thank you!

31/07/2023

More questions & answers ...

On my recent TreeLore Walk there was a question about Horse Chestnuts - how long do they typically live for? It seems to be the consensus that they can live up to 300 years - but this would be the upper end of the scale, and would take into account ideal growing conditions.

I do remember giving out a figure of 800 wildlife species relying upon the oak tree - I fact checked this, and was really surprised to see a phenomenal figure of 2,300 species benefiting from the oak (source Woodland Trust). I couldn't find a figure easily for sycamore, it will be a lot less, but still definitely earns its place in our hedgerows.

31/07/2023

Questions and answers ...

On the last Dorchester Tree Walk (which was very wet, and I take my hat off to the 4 teenagers who attended) there were two questions I couldn't answer on the spot. One was - what is your favourite tree & why? There are so many to choose from, but on giving it some thought I would have to say Alder because it holds some interest all year round, and I love the wine-coloured catkins that you can see on the tree through the winter, but which are more noticeable in January & February.

The second question was fungi-related - if 80-90% of plants form beneficial mycorrhizal relationships with fungi, what do the remaining percentage of plants do? There doesn't seem to be a comprehensive answer to this - it is believed that they may form relationships with other types of fungi, and that somehow those fungi may still somehow plug into the mycorrhizal network, perhaps in a neutral way. Plants which don't seem to form mycorrhizal relationships are: azalea, beet, blueberry, the brassica family, carnation, cranberry, huckleberry, lingonberry, mustard, orchids, protea, rhododendron, rush, rutabaga, sedge, spinach.

Follow the link for an interesting episode of The Infinite Monkey Cage on the general topic of fungi:

Brian Cox and Robin Ince discover the magic of mushrooms.

17/07/2023

Walking with friends this weekend near Stourhead Gardens. Didn't have my camera on me, but saw a wonderful oak adjacent to the grotto marking the source of the Stour River. I checked on the Ancient Tree Inventory, and indeed it is listed. An unusually short, stubby oak, but impressive nonetheless!!

The Woodland Trust is a charity registered in England and Wales (No. 294344) and in Scotland (No. SC038885). A non-profit making company limited by guarantee. Registered in England No. 1982873. Woodland Trust (Enterprises) Limited, registered in England (No. 2296645), a wholly owned subsidiary of th...

17/07/2023

Weather is looking much more settled this week ... join me for the Dorchester Tree Walk this Wednesday!