Join us on February 9th for an intriguing exploration of London's conifer barks. From the warm, comforting feel of giant redwoods to the coarse, armor-like texture of Corsican pines, learn about the fascinating variety of barks that adorn these majestic trees. We'll delve into the sensory experience of touching these barks, their vibrant colors, and the unique characteristics that make each species special. Don't miss this tactile journey through London's parks and gardens, where you'll gain a new appreciation for the often-overlooked beauty of conifer barks!
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Tree flowers
Trees in flower last month e.g. the hybrid strawberry tree, autumn flowering cherry, Persian ironwood and various early cherries continue to flower through this month. Trees now coming more fully into flower include mimosa, yew, some willows and even red maples Acer rubrum and much awaited magnolias if the winter has been a mild one. Trees which tend to make their first appearance in February are a host of new cherries Prunus spp. the Headache tree Umbellularia californica, as well as the occasional eucalyptus.
When you lay a flat hand on the bole of a conifer to examine the texture of its bark, sensations can vary from warmth and comfort in the case of a giant redwood tree to surprise in the cae of the coarse armour plating on a Corsican pine. Barks are made up of many dead layers of inner bark lying one on top of one another, often broken into fissures, plates or scales on the surface. As the bole increases in diameter the old cells of the growing cambium layer get crushed against the bark causing splits to occur.
All this results in the extraordinary range of different textures we see in conifer barks. They also have a substantial range of different colours varying from silver grey to cinnamon brown with a wide range of reds and purples. The conifers which grow as tall, linear columns differ widely, some covered in scales, others in fibrous threads or possibly just lots of resin blisters. Young conifers often have smooth trunks which then become coarse and deeply fluted as they age. They are all best examined either during or just after rain. Rain brings out many of the colours and can even produce different vertical stripes of colour as it runs down any fissures.
The conifers we notice in more central areas of London are monkey puzzle trees, Corsican and Scot’s pines, yews, maidenhair trees, cypresses and cedars. Among these, the trunk of the monkey puzzle tree could easily be confused with the leg of some mighty dinosaur and yew tree trunks stand out because of their often bright patches of mahogany red. Scot’s pine, our native pine, has always been regarded as one of the most beautiful of all pines, the yellows, ochres and oranges on its upper trunk almost glowing at sunset whereas its lower trunk looks more like alligator skin. In other pines it is the tall ram-rod pillar-like trunks that we tend to notice more in winter.
A good range of pines can be found at Kew with the barks of the lace-bark pine Pinus bungeana and red pine P. resinosa standing out. The former sheds its surface plates in a jigsaw fashion, revealing a variety of colours beneath. This feature has made it one of the most ornamental of all conifers, so much so the Chinese sold so many wild seedlings in their markets its true distribution in the wild is as yet unknown. The red pine is also very memorable with its lower trunk being pinkish-brown changing to a reddish brown as it ascends and then becoming covered in curled scales. A variety of other interesting pines can be found in Brookwood cemetery.
Fir trees (Abies spp.)are unfortunately so sensitive to aerial pollution that they are rarely seen in cities. To see towering trunks of species such as the grand and noble firs, covered in resin blisters, you have to travel much further north to private and public gardens. However, Windsor Great park and the nearby Savill and Valley gardens not too far from London are still good places to walk among large, impressive mature conifers. These include the redwoods with their unusual shaggy, fibrous trunks which children like to punch with impunity as well as a noble and a grand fir.
Everyone is familiar with at least one spruce which is the Norway spruce or Christmas tree. It has a stringy copper-red bark when young that becomes dark purple with lifting scales as it ages. A small group of other spruces can be found at Beale arboretum including the celebrated Brewer’s weeping spruce. Unfortunately it weeps so much that its bark is hardly visible.
In the American Rockies where the Ponderosa pine Pinus ponderosa grows, children collect the cinnamon red plates that flake off and separate their shapes into local animals such as dogs, owls, horses, geese and even skunks. Its bark smells of butterscotch and a good specimen can be found in the Savill gardens.
