Work was also taking place on another tree last week.
Details from Emily: An oak up-rooted overnight North of the lake. We can see no sign of fungal activity that would affect the stability of the tree, nor can we find any other warning indication of structural weakness. When trees grow up in dense forest they tend to grow quickly to compete for the light. Less energy is spent on developing anchor roots much needed for growing on banks, so after the wind, rain and nastiness the roots simply let go of the soil. Mark found the tree when he and I were out inspecting the collection after yet another windy night. The resulting logs, by the way, are lining the drive to the house to prevent vehicles going off-piste.
The garden team have since removed the crown of the tree that was blocking the path, but the rest of the long trunk and all of the roots are still clearly visible between the lower and upper paths – the size of this tree is evident and just illustrates how vital it is that we close the garden in cases of high winds. Pictures below….
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Finally a very Merry Christmas from the team in the Estate Office! We’re all off on our festive breaks either today or tomorrow, but the garden will remain open during the next week (except on Christmas Day itself).
I hope you all have a lovely Christmas and New Year, and we’ll be back with more news from Stourhead in the New Year. Lauren
