Tree spotting at Badbury Woods Badbury Woods is a great place to explore and discover some of our

native tree species in the UK.

Whether you’ve come for a peaceful, solitary walk, are with a group of

friends or want to explore with the family, use this guide to help you

identify some of the trees standing tall around you.

Larch (Larix decidua)

This is a pretty quick growing tree which can

reach dizzying heights of up to 50 metres,

although 30 metres is the average. They can

live for up to 250 years!

The Larch is a ‘coniferous’ tree in that it has

needle-shaped leaves and produces cones.

However, unusually, it is also ‘deciduous’

meaning that it sheds its needles in the winter.

It’s bark is a pinkish brown colour.

Tree thinking

Larch reminds us to rest and recover. In European Folklore, it was thought that it

protected us from enchantments and wearing and burning it helped to ward off

evil spirits.

Beech (Fagus sylvatica)

A fast growing tree which can reach heights of

up to 40 metres.

They have shallow roots which makes them

vulnerable to high winds and droughts.

It has oval shaped leaves which are arranged

alternately along the twigs.

Young leaves are light green and hairy, but

they gradually darken and lose the hair as the

leaf matures.

It’s bark is smooth and grey.

Tree thinking

Beech trees are associated with truth and femininity and is often considered the

queen of British trees, where the Oak is the king.

The leaves were also thought to have medicinal properties and were boiled to

make a paste to help relieve swellings.

A very fast growing tree which is

considered by some as a weed.

It isn’t native to the UK instead coming

from central and southeast Europe.

Sycamore (Acer pseudoplatanus)

It has large leaves which look a bit like

Maple leaves and have very heavy leaf

fall in the Autumn.

When its flowers are fertilised they

form ‘winged’ seeds, which float like

helicopters on the wind, helping with

its dispersal.

Tree thinking

In Wales, sycamore trees were used in the traditional craft of making ’love

spoons’, which were decoratively carved wooden spoons given as a romantic

gesture.

Oak (Quercus robur)

Tree thinking

In England, the Oak is a symbol of strength. Druids believed them to be sacred

and practised their rituals in Oak groves. The Oak leaf is the emblem of the

National Trust and The Woodland Trust as well as many other environmental

organisations.

Oaks can grow up to 50 metres high and live for

up to 500 years or more!

As they get older they shorten in order to

extend their lifespan.

Young Oaks have green/yellow bark which turns

to grey as it matures.

The Oak produces male and

female flowers. The females are

small and found in the axils of

the leaves. The males are

drooping catkins. When

fertilised they develop into

Acorns.

Scots Pine (Pinus sylvestris)

Tree thinking

In folklore, pine cones were recognised as symbols of fertility and the evergreen

nature of the pine represented immortality. In England, clusters of Scots pines

were planted around farmsteads as windbreakers and along driveways to help

travellers find out where they were going in bad weather!

Scots Pine can grow up to 35 metres and live for

up to 700 years.

They are native to northern Europe and are

truly majestic!

The leaves are shaped like needles and

are blue-green.

The male and female flowers grow on

the same tree and this is called

monoecious. After they are pollinated

by the wind they develop into cones.

It’s bark is scaly orange-brown.

Silver Birch (Betula pedula)

Tree thinking

In Celtic mythology, the Silver Birch is a symbol of purity and renewal. At New

Year’s, people would bundle up birch twigs and use them to drive out the bad

spirits of the old year and, to this day, some gardeners still use birch besom to

purify their gardens.

These are quite short lived trees that

are quick to colonise open areas and

are known as a ‘Pioneer species’.

After the last Ice Age they were

amongst the first species to colonise

the UK.

They have roughly triangular-shaped leaves with

rounded corners and are serrated or have ‘teeth’.

The leaves are a great source of food for butterflies.

It’s bark is brightly coloured, starting off red on young

stems and becoming white-silver with age.

After pollination, they develop hanging catkins which

contain hundreds off seeds which are then dispersed

by the wind.

Black Pine (Pinus nigra)

Tree thinking

Firs and spruces represent fertility, protection, good fortune and prosperity. They

were thought to help ward off bad spirits and protect buildings and livestock

from destructive weather, disease and bad luck, so people would hang sprigs

above their doorways.

They are fast growing evergreen trees

which can grow up to 60 metres and

live for up to 500 years! They can

grown between 30cm—70cm a year.

They are from the Mediterranean area

i.e. Spain, Cyprus, Corsica and parts of

North Africa.

After pollination, long cones form which

can be between 7cm-8cm long.

The needles or leaves form in bunches of

between 2 and 5.

When mature, it’s bark is dark grey-silver

and has deep cracks or fissures in it which

gives it it’s scaly appearance.

Wild Cherry (Prunus avium)

Tree thinking

In Scottish folklore it was thought that the Wild Cherry had mysterious powers

and to come across one was considered both lucky and significant in your life.

The Wild Cherry tree can grow up to 30 metres in

height and live for around 60 years. It’s a popular

ornamental tree found in gardens. It has strong hard

wood which makes it perfect for making furniture

and, when burned, it has a sweet scent similar to it’s

flowers.

It’s leaves are oval, green and ‘toothed’,

with pointed ends, which turn a deep

orange-red in Autumn. They blossom with

white flowers in April and develop into

cherries. Birds eat the cherries and

disperse the seeds.

They are Hermaphrodite, which means

they have both male and female

reproductive parts in the same flower.