To the majority of people trees are hard enough to identify in the summer, let alone in the winter. Take away the leaves and you would be forgiven for saying they all look the same. However the Berks, Bucks and … Continue reading
Under some of the oak trees on campus, as well as the fallen leaves, tiny pale discs are appearing. Sometimes these are present in large numbers. They show up particularly well on tarmac pavements. These are button galls which were … Continue reading
Early autumn is a great time to go looking for galls. Most have had time to develop but those on leaves are still on the trees for easy spotting. Two of the larger galls on oak are Knopper galls and … Continue reading
After reading Fay’s blog on the holm oak (Quercus ilex) under attack, I – like you – was in a better position to look for and recognise leaf-mining beasties on campus. What better way to follow her blog than to … Continue reading
Holm oak (Quercus ilex) is a Mediterranean tree species that was introduced to Britain in the 1500s. Unlike our native oak species, Holm oak is evergreen and holds its leaves all year round. It’s latin name, ilex, refers to the fact … Continue reading
If you’ve spent any time admiring the variety of oaks (Quercus spp.) on campus, you may have noticed strange growths on various parts of the trees. During last week’s Vegetation Survey and Assessment session, I came across a badly affected … Continue reading
Budburst is the emergence of new leaves on plants, which signals the beginning of a new growing season cycle. (GLOBE) Budburst is one of the more commonly recorded phenophases, many organisations and phenological networks carrying out recording for this seasonal event, including: Project … Continue reading
This gallery contains 10 photos.
The Whiteknights tree collection is famous for its Fagaceae! For example, in his twelve favourite Whiteknights trees, University of Reading’s tree expert Mr Rupert Taylor included 6 Fagaceae: 5 Quercus robur and 1 Castanea sativa (BBC, 2008). Three important genera of the Fagaceae in … Continue reading
