Ash Trees

As a follow-on from the Ash disease posting, here is a very large Ash by the side of the canal towpath at Luddenfoot. It must be one of the largest girth maiden Ash we have locally and probably is as old as the canal. I hope someone is looking after it. We need a local Notable Tree Register to document these 'forgotten' specimens.

Luddenden Foot

The Yorkshire Sculpture Park at Bretton Hall has trees that hold my interest more than some of the sculptures. This Ash is individually fenced and is fantastic. It appears at first to be a complete tree until you look at the other side to see it is only a third of its original diameter. It must be approaching 6oo years old and the only reason it is this old is because of past management as a pollard. Not one other passer-by even glanced at it.

Pollarding is out of fashion and misunderstood by many people in the tree profession but look at this photo to see that as long as there is functioning sapwood, trees can survive. Pollarding rejuvenates the tree and re-sets the clock.

Ash looking 'whole'

 

Showing outer skin of sapwood

The tree is still pollarded regularly