Tree Appreciation Tuesday - one in a line of oaks

One of our regular walks just from home down on to  the levels and round Hay Hill and along Haymoor Drove lies a number of several large Oak Trees.  On one side the land rises, but on the drove side, the roots of these large oaks plunge into the Haymoor Rhyne.

Even though we have lived here a relatively short time, we have come to love the diversity of the landscape, from the Mendips to the low laying areas.  The drainage ditches are called rhynes which on the whole are straight, and often alongside run droves, which are almost totally unsuited to traffic except for farm traffic, but make excellent cycle and walking routes to view the varied bird life, tree scape, ample skies, and in summer beautiful cattle and sheep.  

Walking away from Coxley Wick in a clockwise direction just as the drove starts to fall to lower ground is a series of tall oak trees.  The one I have singled off for particular appreciation this Tuesday is this one, with long extending limbs as if reaching out towards some spot on the horizon. 

I posted this next picture of that same tree on Briton's Ancient and Sacred Trees on Facebook:

It is not a good picture, as it was such a dark day and I felt I had to adjust the exposure to show some of the detail.  The follow comment were very interesting: 

Pollards are often much older than maidens of similar size and girth because the act of pollarding slows growth. This tree looks like a pollard because there are several large trunks (and at least one scar) growing from the top of a trunk. Nick Own Dec 2023

Several of the other oaks had multiple trunks.

This is just past the main clump of oaks in the direction we were walking, with one or two more oaks further along.  These two riders we crossed  again 30 minutes later, when we stopped to have a chat.

At this stage I looked back and took a picture of the main group of oaks.

This week many of the fields are covered in water. Indeed had they not dredged the rhyne last year and left the ever increasing mounds at the side of the one tracked tarmacked lane,  a little further down on a right angled elbow, we would have had to walk along the road in water nearly up to our knees.  Even so walking along the 'bank' between the rhyne and the road led to a feeling of 'adventure' and excitement.  The water fowl were having a great time on the flooded fields and dozens of BBB ie Big Black Birds ranging from crows to jackdaws were busy feeding on worms around the edges of the water. 

Early this year there was less water in this field I really ought to have taken pictures this week, but with further heavy rain looming, I felt that I had lingered long enough and Mr S was getting techy as we had left before our morning coffee time and had taken a drink with us.

I am currently reading The Hidden Life of Trees by Peter Wohlleben.  It is beautifully written and I am learning so much about Trees.