THE MIGHTY ENGLISH OAK TREE

    To English folk the mighty oak
      Is England's noblest tree;
 Its hard~grained wood is strong and good
      As English hearts can be.
  And would you know how oak~trees grow,
      The secret may be told:
   You do but need to plant for seed
      One acorn in the mould'
    For even so, long years ago,
     Were born the oaks of old.

Oh Oak Tree you are the most beloved of all trees, you are interwoven into the very essence of British Life, great warships of old were hewn from your timber, the quaint old timber framed houses so well known to Englishmen and visitors alike, with their blackened beams are made from your stout timbers, you have sheltered future kings , you were worn as a badge in times of yore, birds and wildlife find food and shelter within your spreading arms and you played an important part in the religious culture of the Ancient Britons. Let me now tell of these wondrous things so all should know how much you mean to me.

Your botany name is Pedunculate or Quercus Robur (pronounced KWER-kus RO-ber) and your favorite habitats are the deciduous Oak Woodlands which occur in temperate climates in the Northern Hemisphere through the whole of Europe to the Caucasus then northward to Scandinavia and growing south to Asia Minor and North Africa, yes you cover a wide ranging area and your climatic tolerance level has a great range too for you will not falter if the weather is sub-zero in Winter with deep frost and snow and neither do you wither in the mild days of summer you prefer it wet but you’ll accept several weeks of drought without complaint. Being a deep rooted tree , well you have to be

you grow as high 165feet your girth reaches as extraordinary size , os you do prefer the wet soil of the lowlands. especially Southern England and there you can be found at an altitude as high as 1320 feet, but in the Highlands of Scotland with the poorer soil, you will rarely be found over 600 feet. The leaves you wear with pride are simple alternate ones about 2 to 5 inches long with rounded lobes (obovate) and the base is auriculate with short petoile. Even Autumn’s mighty splendour does not really change you, as you color changes little, midst all the autumnal finery of other trees, you quietly shed your leaves, which change little in color, and you wait until the very last moment too before gently falling into Winters slumberous Arms.

But not let any one be fooled by your quiet display, more than any other tree you support a multitudinous number of life forms, including up to 284 species of insects which of course attracts the bird life and your strong sheltering branches provide many a "des res" nesting spot for woodland birds , Lichen, that wonderful mossy fungus has taken to you very well, in fact 324 laxa (sub-species or ecologically distinct varieties) of it are found on your trunk, one of which is the Mistletoe. A wander through the woods on a summers day will not only produce the cry of the Tits and Tree Creepers who nest in your branches but relief from the heat for your leaves fix carbon from CO2 (a major green house gas) from the atmosphere through photosynthesis, the result is the manufacture of oxygen, and your leaves cool in Summer by transpiration, which put simple is the input of water vapour into the atmosphere, yes walking beneath your canopy is truly a wonderful experience.

Your fruit is the tiny acorn, yes you started the saying "from tiny acorns groweth mighty oaks" , but not only is it symbolic that from small beginnings many a large one has grown, they provide food for woodland creatures, beneath your lofty boughs in Autumn scamper myriad little animals, look there goes a squirrel and did I see the badger out at night, pigeons, ducks, pheasants too all feed on your bounty, some gobbling as fast as they can and some well they eat too but put some aside for Winters long cold spell. So popular is your tiny acorn that farmers, granted licenses which date back time immemorial, let their pigs root amongst your roots and do they love the fruit! Amongst the birds who still remain the Jay is especially partial to a feed of acorns too.

You are also written into the History books in many ways and long before the Scottish Clansmen wore Clan Cameron Badges the men of Lochniel wore what is known as a "Plant Badge" . During the midst of battle with the swirl of various tartans this enabled men to distinguish friend from foe at one quick glance they could see the sprig of Oak resting in a hat indicating Clan affiliation. The Men of Clan Cameron called theirs the ‘RIGH na COLLIE’ - The King of the Woods - the mighty British Oak Tree. It is not known whether the wearing of a plant badge was purely for identification or whether it demonstrated a deeper more regional superstitious "respect" but it was worn with pride.

Even further back in history you played your part in religious ceremonies and as recently as 1998 SEEHENGE a ring of giant oak posts, fifty-five in all with one huge inverted oak in the centre was uncovered at Holmes-next-the-sea on the Norfolk Coast.

Covered for 4000 (four thousand) years by peat dunes it is known because of the precise dating technology available today that the giant circle was began in April/June 2050BC. This same technology also tells us that the giant alter stump, which was dragged into place by the use of "rope" made from the vines of honeysuckle was already 150 years old! That the smaller ones where placed in the circle a year later. Yes your timber has remained unharmed for 4000 years, could we say that our "modern" edifices will survive this long? I wonder! Preserved in peat you have kept your secrets for 4000 years until now and how you have enriched our knowledge of the Pre-historic Bronze Age. Was the inverted middle stump symbolic of the world turned upside down - the "inversion " of life and death - oh how this will be debated!

Back in time, but not as far back as the Bronze Age, great men set sail in ships hewn from your stout timbers. Sir Francis Drake, a Devonshire man, made many a famous voyage in the Golden Hind. And who can forget the famous ship Mary Rose, built at the behest of King Henry the Eighth she sank on her maiden voyage and has lain at the bottom of the sea until quite recently when modern technology raised her from her watery grave. To the delight of all large parts of her were intact and twentieth century people gained a great insight into how the ships of old were built, yes again your mighty timber withstood the passage of time!

Not only famous sailors were grateful of your bounteous riches, but a King of England owed his life to you. For after the terrible defeat at Worcester, the final battle in the British Civil War between Cromwells Roundheads and the Royalist Chevaliers, Prince Charles, as he was then, was forced to flee for his life to the continent of Europe. During his escape he was sheltering in the home of a loyal Royalist when who should come knocking but the Roundheads! They had word he was there! Quick thinking on the part of all and your sheltering boughs saved his life, for he spent an entire day laying in your branches, whilst on the very ground below Roundheads searched in vain. The tree he sheltered in is still preserved - although now alas it is no longer part of a great wood land but stands alone - surround by a "fence" to preserve - but it still stands!

But you have found fame in your own rights! T he "Robin Hood Oak" was grown from an acorn brought from the famous Major Oak of Sherwood Forest (yes THAT forest Robin Hood and his Merry Men) by Prof. Nelson C. Brown circa 1926. The Robin Hood Oak now grows proudly in the grounds of the SUNY Environmental Science & Forestry Campus between the Walters Hall and Bray Hall. On the trunk this tree proudly bears a plaque which gives a little of its history. On this plaque it states that the Major Oak has a girth of 10 feet and is around the ripe old age of approximately 1000 years! This tree is one of only 10 famous trees listed in the National Registry of the U.S. (#1 in New York State).

Your continued existence over another 1000 years is assured, for as part of the Millennium Celebrations the Millennium Forestry based in Devon on the edge of the Dartmoor National Park, planted a whole Forest of English Oak, and their they will be allowed to grow naturally in their own native country for the next Millennium to admire and worship. A fitting tribute to the mighty English Oak so beloved of many many people!