The deep grooved trunk of an English Oak provides shelter for several bracket fungi. A few of the tree’s leafy branches can be seen on either side of the trunk, which stands in a grassy part of the deer park at Petworth House in Sussex. The 700-acre park is one of the finest surviving and unspoilt examples of an English landscape designed by Lancelot “Capability” Brown. The park and house are now in the care of the National Trust charity, which says: “Petworth Park is home to an assortment of ancient and veteran trees, some of which are nearly 1,000 years old, including three ancient oak trees, one of which was a sapling during the Norman conquest of 1066.”

It’s #ThickTrunkTuesday and #FungiSeason #MobilePhotography
#Trees #EnglishOaks
#EastCoastKin
An English Oak growing in the deer park at Petworth and providing a home for some bracket fungi.

Bright green acorns sit in their gnarled “cups” on the stalks of an English Acorn tree with its distinctive darker green leaves. There have been multiple nuts on the village trees this summer. Every few years, some species of trees and shrubs produce a bumper crop of their fruits or nuts. The collective term for these fruits and nuts is “mast”, so we call this a mast year. One of the main theories for this behaviour is “predator satiation”. Animals like squirrels, jays, mice and badgers feed on acorns and beech nuts. When the trees produce smaller crops for a few consecutive years, they are in effect keeping the populations of these animals in check. But during a mast year, the trees produce more food than the animals can eat. This abundance causes a boom in populations of small mammals like mice. It also guarantees some will be left over to survive and grow into new trees. Mast years have a major evolutionary advantage for the tree. Producing nuts slightly stunts the tree’s growt but as it tends to happen every 5-10 years it’s worth the payoff for some of the crop to germinate into new saplings. *Information courtesy of the Woodland Trust of which we are members.

#ColorADay #GreenSat #ArtChallenges #EastCoastKin #PhotographersOfBluesky #EnglishOaks
Plenty of acorns this year on the village oaks and some are starting to turn brown but these are still green. I think we are in for a mast year when every few years, some trees and shrubs produce a bumper crop.

Two acorns sit in their knobbly “cups” on the branch of an English Oak tree whose distinctive serrated darker green leaves form the background to the shot. Another acorn peeps out from behind one of the leaves.

The world turns and the seasons spin on. The village Oak trees are now darker green but laden with acorns of a fresher colour. Happy Saturday!
#ColorADay #GreenSat
#EnglishOaks #photogtaphy #naturephotography #EastCoastKin

A lone oak tree stands in a lush green field surrounded by other trees under a summer blue sky with many grey and white clouds. Our home is nearby across the field in the village.

#BlueSkyMonday #Nature #Photography
#PhotographersUnited
#PhotographersOfBlueSky
#ArtYear #EastCoastKin #EnglishOaks

“The oak tree stands so tall and proud,
Its branches reaching to the clouds.
Its trunk so strong, its leaves so green,
A sight unlike any other scene.”
Anonymous poem

A large English Oak tree stands in a green field in front of a hedgerow against a pale blue sky with wispy white clouds. In the background you can glimpse the whitewashed front of the village pub.

#ThickTrunkTuesday
#Surrey
#EnglishOaks
#VillagePubs
You might think our pub would be called The Oak but, no, it is The Haycutter. Maybe the mighty tree that stands by the stile on the other side of the road was just an acorn when the pub first opened and the field was full of hay.

Small red and green oak apples sit on the branch of a tree surrounded by fresh green leaves.

#Trees
#EnglishOaks
#Surrey
We spotted loads of these on a tree in the field on our walk today. They look like tiny apples but are not for eating. They are oak apples or galls caused by wasps laying their eggs on the dormant leaf. They drop off in June. I have never seen so many on one tree.

The trunk and branches of an oak stand out against a blue sky, dappled with light white clouds as green leaves start to appear. On the right, other trees are also taking on a green haze as the sunlight does its work.

#EnglishOaks
#SpringFoliage
#SurreyVillages
Another good indication that Spring is here. The large oak standing outside a neighbouring village church pushes out fresh light green leaves. Only a week ago the branches were bare.

This oak on our village green now carries a little sign urging passers by to linger awhile and give it more than a passing glance. A good idea? Maybe so. We often take things for granted in our daily lives.
#trees
#EnglishOaks
#Surrey
#VillageGreens
#wintertrees

#EnglishOaks
#BlueskyPhotography
#DawnMists
#Surrey
#EnglishVillages
As the temperature rose today, so did the mists in the fields near our home. The ground is still frozen, turning the hoof marks into dangerous ankle-breakers. The sunrise was muted by cloud cover … but I’ll take it over rain.