Why & Where

Hornbeam, a native large tree though probably only truly native in the South and East of England, is one of the last of the species to arrive from continental Europe. A tree with a maximum height of 25m (80ft), though often less, it is upright when young but eventually forms a rounded, elongated head.

Spindle is industrious, delicate, colourful. The spindle is at its loveliest in autumn when its leaves turn russet and its pink and orange fruits ripen. Wildlife loves its leaves and fruit, and aphids flock to it, bringing with them an array of their predators. Mature it grows to 9m and can live for more than 100 years.​​​​​​​

Maple is a pollution fighter, autumn stunner, and syrup maker. Field maples can grow to 20m and live for up to 350 years. Its leaves turn a rich, golden-yellow in the autumn, but for the rest of the year, it is quite inconspicuous. It produces large, winged seeds that are dispersed by the wind in the autumn. This is a sturdy broadleaf that supports caterpillars, aphids, and all their predators, all while resisting air pollution. 

A symbol of fertility and a forager's delight. Crab apple trees are associated with love and marriage. Mature trees grow to around 10m in height and can live up to 100 years. With a greyish brown, flecked bark, trees can become quite gnarled and twisted, especially when exposed, and the twigs often develop spines. This crabbed appearance influenced its common name 'crab apple'.

Whitebeam is a deciduous broadleaf tree that is compact and domed. Charming and domestic, the fruit is a favourite of birds. Mature trees can grow to a height of 15m. The bark and twigs are smooth and grey and the shoots are brick red in sunlight but greyish-green in shade. Whitebeam has oval, serrated-edged leaves that are softly hairy underneath and dark green and shiny on top.

Hazel is a small, shrubby tree of woodlands and well known for its long, yellow catkins that appear in spring, and its green, ripening to brown, fruits (familiar to us as hazelnuts) that appear in late summer. These are a favourite
food for grey squirrels, dormice and wood mice. 

Mountain Ash (sorbus cashmiriana) has clusters of white flowers in late spring, followed by orange-red berries in autumn and yellow autumn leaf colours. Mountain Ash can be grown as a large, spreading shrub or small tree. The pink flowers are followed by white fruit in autumn.

Festive, neat and prickly. Holly shelters birds and gives hedgehogs a cosy place to hibernate. Mature trees can grow up to 15m and live for 300 years. Holly is dioecious, meaning that the male and female flowers occur on different trees. Flowers are white with four petals. They bloom any time between early spring and the very beginning of summer.

Silver birch is a familiar, small, spindly tree with thin branches and papery bark. In spring, the male catkins (or 'lamb's tails') turn yellow and shed their pollen, which is carried by the wind to the short, green, female catkins that appear on the same tree. Silver birch has 'drooping' branches and triangular leaves, with jagged teeth that grow from hairless leaf stalks. 

It is named after the month in which it blooms, and it is a sign that spring is turning to summer. The pale green leaves of this hedgerow staple are often the first to appear in spring, with an explosion of pretty pale-pink blossom in May.
It simply teems with wildlife from bugs
to birds. Mature trees can reach a height of 15m and are characterised by their dense, thorny habit.

Sweet Chestnut is a deciduous tree which can reach 35m when matured and live for up to 700 years. They belong to the same family as oaks and beeches. The bark is grey-purple and smooth, and develops vertical fissures with age. The twigs are purple-brown and buds are plum, red-brown and oval in shape.