Over the weekend we were lucky enough to visit Westonbirt Arboretum in Gloucestershire. I need not have worried that we had timed the trip too late for autumn color – there was still plenty to enjoy and it was a lovely weekend exploring a part of the country that we seldom visit nowadays although I did spend some time nearby when I was at college many years ago!
Before we even arrived at the arboretum there were plenty of trees to enjoy as part of the landscape. Stately Beech and Oak trees stood as lone specimens in dry stone walled fields, with the room to spread their branches so that their aged profiles could be admired, glowing like golden beacons in the foggy light.
Elegant Birch trees with their distinctive white and gray bark and cascading twigs were still peppered with diamond shaped, golden leaves but were mostly admired for their twiggy, gracefully weeping silhouettes – ‘Lady of The Woods’ is a very apt common name for our native Betula pendula!
Poplars, reaching for the sky stood like sentries on field edges, planted as windbreaks to protect crops and greenhouses. Devoid of leaves, they stood naked except for the occasional bunch of Mistletoe growing high up in some of the trees.
Westonbirt itself has changed a lot since our last visit a long while ago. There is a visitor center and a swish new entrance with bar coded tickets which are swiped at a turnstile. The main paths have been hardened to cope with the increasing number of visitors – a good move in my book as it makes the whole experience much easier with young children, pushchairs or older citizens. There were dogs aplenty as it is a popular walking route at any time of the year and they can do no harm off the lead unless they decide on an altercation with another!
Westonbirt holds the National Collection of Japanese Maples and we were not too late to see many of these elegant plants in their dramatic autumn uniforms of molten gold or red. Planted in a sheltered area, partly shaded by deciduous Larch, these beautiful, long lived small trees were totally at home. Specimens ranged from the oldest that were several metres tall to more recently planted additions, still cosseted by rabbit guards, but showing the brilliance of color that these plants are renowned for.
But the highlight of the visit for me was later in the walk after we had recovered from ‘Japanese Maple overload’. Walking back along a main path we came across a very old Plane tree, the gnarled mottled bark, as well as the girth size giving away its age. There were still plenty of butter yellow leaves on the tree, accentuating the dark outlines of the branches and the beauty of the shapes that they had created over many years. We both spent several minutes looking up into the tree’s canopy awed by the size and beauty as well as wondering how many animals and insects had made their home in this gargantuan plant through the years.
That was one of many memories that I will take away from the visit as well as the number of other people who were enjoying this beautiful place as much as we were.
We will definitely not leave the next visit so long!
