Magical
Trees - Oak written by one of our students Gypsy Willowmoon
English Oak:
Scientific name:
Quercus Robur
Common
names: Pedunculate Oak
Family:
Fagaceae
UK Province:
Native
Oaks are a
symbol of great strength and endurance. In England the Oak has assumed the
status of national emblem.
These magnificent trees grow to well over
30metres and can live for 1,000 years or more. Flowering begins in late spring,
with the fruits or acorns ripening in time for autumn. Acorns grow in clusters
of 5 normally, and are a rich food source for lots of birds and small mammals,
particularly the Jay and squirrels, who cache away the acorns to eat them
later. Acorns are not produced until the tree is at least 40yrs old. Peak acorn
fecundity usually occurs around 80-120 yrs.
Being deciduous (a tree that shed's its leaves
annually) Oaks leave their distinctive lobed and wavy leaves in the winter.
The Oak has
been a prized source of timber since prehistoric times. It is said that an Oak
tree hid Charles II from the roundheads at Boscobel.
English Oak
is arguably the best known and loved of British native trees. It is the most
common tree species in the UK, especially in Southern and Central British
deciduous woods. As common Oaks mature they form broad and spreading crowns,
with sturdy branches beneath. Their open canopy enables light to penetrate
through to the woodland floor, allowing bluebell and primroses to grow below.
In England
the Oak has for centuries been a national symbol of strength and survival. It
has played an important part in our culture. Couples were wed under ancient
Oaks in Oliver Cromwell's time.
The festival
Yule log was traditionally cut from Oak.
It features
on the 1987 £ coin and is the inspiration for the emblem of many
environmentally focused organisations, including The Woodland Trust.
Traditionally
the leaves bark and acorns were believed to heal many medical ailments
including diarrhoea, inflammation and kidney stones.
Historically
humans also collected acorns and processed them into flour for bread making! I
can't imagine that that tasted very nice!
Their smooth and silvery brown bark becomes rugged and deeply fissured
with age. Oak tree growth is particularly rapid in youth but gradually slows at
around 120 yrs. Oaks even shorten with age in order to expand their life span.
Leaves
around 10 cm long with 4-5 deep lobes with smooth edges. Leaf burst occurs mid
May (although the leaves did burst in March this year) the leaves have almost
no stem and grow in bunches.
Flowers -
are long yellow hanging catkins which distribute pollen into the air.
Fruits -
Acorn are commonly 2-2.5 cms long, borne on lengthy stalks and held tightly by
cupules (the cup shaped base)
As it ripens
the green acorn takes on a more autumnal brown colour, loosens from the cupule
and falls.
Most acorns
never get the chance to germinate, as they are a rich food source, eaten by
many wild creatures, Jays, mice and squirrels.
They need to
germinate and root quickly to prevent drying out or becoming victims of the
harvest.
Following
successful germination a new sapling will appear the following spring.
Oaks have
distinctive lobed leaves with short leaf stalks (petioles) leaf lobes are
rounded.
They are
native to the northern hemisphere existing in cool regions right through to
tropical climates. They provide a habitat rich in biodiversity, they support
more life forms than any other native trees. They host hundreds of species of insect,
supply many British birds with an important food source. In autumn mammals such
as badgers and deer take advantage of the falling acorns. Flower and leaf buds
of English Oak and Sessile Oak are the food plants of Caterpillars of purple
hairstreak butterflies. The soft leaves of the English Oaks break down with
ease in autumn and form a rich leaf mould beneath the tree, supporting invertebrates,
such as the stag beetle and numerous fungi, like the Oak bug milk cap. Holes
and crevices in the bark are nesting spots for the Pied flycatcher or Marsh tit.
Several British bat species may also roost in old woodpecker holes or under
loose bark, as well as feeding on the rich supply of insects in the tree
canopy.
Tannin found
in the bark has been used to tan leather since Roman times.
Toxicity:
Tannic acid
in the leaves is poisonous to horses if consumed in excess, damaging the
kidneys.
Acorns are
poisonous to horses and cattle, though pigs can eat them safely in moderation.
The Oak
Processionary Moth is a non native pest that has been found in London and
Berkshire not only does it damage the foliage of the trees it increases the
Oaks susceptibility to other diseases, It is a risk to human health - The moths hairs are toxic and can lead to
itching and respiratory problems if
inhaled.
Acute Oak
Decline (AOD) and Chronic Oak Decline (COD) are serious conditions affecting
Britain's Oaks, several contributing factors are linked to the disease. Key
symptoms include: canopy thinning, branch dieback and black weeping patches on
stems and lesions underlying the bleed spots.
Source
woodlandtrust.org.uk and treesforlife.org.uk
The Oak is
held in high regard across most cultures in Europe. To the Greeks, Romans,
Celts, Slavs and Teutonic tribes the Oak was one of the foremost venerated
trees and in each case associated with the supreme God in their pantheon. Oak
being sacred to Zeus, Jupiter, Dagda, Perun and Thor, each of these goods also
had dominion over rain, thunder and lightning. Druids frequently worshipped and
practised their rites in Oak groves, mistletoe probably the Druids most potent
and magical plant, frequently grew on Oak, and its presence was believed to
indicate the hand of God having placed it there during a lightning strike.
Ancient
kings presented themselves as the personifications of these Gods, taking on the
responsibility not only for success in battle but also fertility of the land,
which relied on rainfall.
They wore
crowns of Oak leaves, as a symbol of the God they represented as kings on
earth.
Royalty has
had a long association with Oak trees too, ancient kings adorned themselves
with crowns made of Oak leaves, and Roman emperors were presented with crowns
of Oak leaves during victory parades.
Oak leaves
have continued to be icons of military prowess to the present day.
Oak leaves
connection to rain fall also survived in more recent folklore in a variety of
similar rhymes about which trees leaves appeared first.
Such as the
Irish saying:
If the Oak
before the Ash,
Then we'll
only have a splash.
If the Ash
before the Oak,
Then we'll
surely have a soak.
St. Columbus
was said to have a fondness and respect for the Oak tree and was said to be
reluctant to fell them.
Many
parishes used to contain what became known as Gospel Oak, a prominent tree at
which part of the Gospel was read during the Beating of the Bounds ceremonies
at Rogantide in spring.
In Somerset
stand the two very ancient Oaks of Gog and Magog (named after the last male and
female giants) which are reputed to be the remnants of the Oak lined
processional route up to the nearby Glastonbury Tor.
The major
Oak in Sherwood Forest is purported to be the tree where Robin Hood and his merry
men hatched their plots and is now a popular tourist attraction, although this
particular tree probably doesn't predate the 16th Century.
Children
would wear Oak leaves or better still Oak apples as part of a custom which
officially lasted until 1859 but in fact continued until well into the
twentieth century.
Source
mythsencyclopedia.com
Source
bbc.co.uk/nature
Forests play
a prominent role in many folktales and legends. In these dark mysterious place
heroes can lose their way, face unexpected challenges and stumble upon hidden
secrets.
Part of the
age old magic of forests lies in the ideas that people have about trees.
In myths and
legends around the world they appear as ladders between worlds, as sources of
life and as physical forms of supernatural beings. With its roots buried deep
in the earth, and its trunk above ground, its branches stretching towards the sky,
a tree serves as a symbolic, living link between this world and those of the
supernatural beings.
In many
myths a tree is a vital part of the structure of the universe. Gods and their
messengers travel from world to world by climbing up and down trees.
The Norse
believed that a tree runs like an axis, or pole, through this world and realms
above and below it. They called their tree Yggdrasill. It was a great Ash tree
that nourished Gods, humans and animals connecting all living things and all
phases of existence.
In
traditional societies of Latvia, Lithuania and Northern Germany, The World Tree
was thought to be a distant Oak, Birch or Apple tree with Iron roots, copper
branches and silver leaves. The spirits of the dead lived in this tree.
Greek folktales
of Goblins in the underworld who try to cut the roots of the tree that is
holding up the earth and sky.
Norse
legends contain a similar image with an evil serpent forever gnawing at
Yggdrasills roots.
The
mythology of early India, presented in texts called the Upanishads, Includes a
cosmic tree called Asvattha. It is the living universe, an aspect of Brahman,
the world spirit. This cosmic tree reverses the usual order. Its roots are in
the sky, and its branches grow downward to cover the earth.
The Greek
Gods Zeus and Hera were known as The Oak God and The oak Goddess.
Zeus; oracle
in Dodona, Epirus, was considered to be the oldest in Greece. The oracle was
founded when a black dove flew from Thebes in Egypt and settled in an Oak tree
at Dodona. The tree became the centre of the temple and priests would divine
Gods assertions and judgements in the rustling of the Oaks leaves. The oracle at Dodona was visited by notable
heroes of Greek mythology including Jason when searching for The Golden Fleece.
In Homers Odyssey, Odysseus consults the Oaken oracle to ask if he should
return to Ithaca as himself or in disguise.
The Oak was
also sacred to Thor, Donar's Oak Old Germans Thor's Oak, was a sacred tree to
Germanic Pagans near Hesse, Germany. In the 18th Century, The Donars Oak was
cut down by Anglo -Saxon Christian missionary St. Boniface. Wood from the tree
was then used to build a church and the site dedicated to St Peter.
Pliny the Elder,
describes the Druids of Gaul performing all their religious ceremonies in Oak
groves. Druids would consume acorns in a way of divining the future. Oak trees
with mistletoe were considered the most powerful in the forest. The mistletoe
was cut from the Oak by a white cloaked Priest with Golden sickle, and two
white bulls would be sacrificed. The religious ceremony culminated with the
rendering of an elixir that was said to cure infertility and to be an antidote
to all poisons. Wearing Oak leaves was a sign of special social status amongst
the Celts.
Those born
under the astrological sign of the Oak (June 10 - July 7th) Have a special gift
of strength. They are protective people and often become a champion for those
who have no voice. The Oak is the crusader and the spokesperson for the
underdog, nurturing, generous and helpful.
The live Oak
was often called “King Oak" by the Celts and also considered sacred to the
Druids as I mentioned earlier, they believe the Oak is connected with great
strength, money, success, fertility and even good fortune.
To carry an
acorn in your pocket for an important interview or meeting, will bring you good
luck.
Sessile Oak
(Quercus Petraea)
About 450
species of Oak have been described worldwide, of which 25 are native to Europe,
but only Sessile and Pendunculate Oaks have such a broad distribution, and they
are the sole species native to North and West of the continent. In the past,
large areas of Europe were covered by temperate deciduous forests in which
these two Oaks predominated, but only a small proportion of these forests
remain today, the majority converted to agriculture.
Sessile Oaks
predominate in the North and West of Scotland.
Sessile Oaks
do NOT produce acorns.
Source
Treesforlife.org
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