Alder - Alnus glutinosa ~ Alder will grow in most soils although likes wet ground, beside fresh water lochs and along river banks, where their strong fibrous roots may help to keep the bank in place. Like most trees, alder flowers before the leaves are out, with attractive reddish catkins and small cones which will contain the seeds. Young growth is not usually eaten by deer. Nitrogen fixing and coppices well. Very vigorous on wet ground. Good firewood, timber and makes excellent charcoal. Alder is a member of the birch family of trees, Betulaceae, and can reach 25 metres in height, although in Scotland it is rarely more than 20 metres tall. Like the birches, it is a pioneer species which grows quickly and is relatively short-lived, with the maximum age typically being 150 years. The annual rate of growth can be up to 90 cm a year, when the tree is young, and after the death of the original trunk, new shoots can sprout from the base, forming a multi-stemmed clump of new growth.
Ash - Fraxinus excelsior ~ A magnificent large deciduous tree that is tolerant of windswept and coastal areas and most soil types, not acid, and prefers well-drained sites. Flowers are dark, almost black, and may be seen before the leaves develop – ash is one of the last trees to come into leaf and is one of the first to loose its leaves in autumn. The seeds are winged keys hanging in dense clusters. Ash is native to Britain and Ireland, the fourth commonest tree species in Britain and is sometimes the dominant tree in a wood. It is found across Europe from the Arctic Circle to Turkey. Ash can be dominant on heavy or calcareous soils but also survives on poor soils where few other trees can grow and will thrive on moist fertile ground with a vigorous root system. Abundant in most conditions except light sandy soils. It is alkaline tolerant. Ash is a strong flexible timber for turnery, furniture and firewood. In the past it was used by the Anglo-Saxons for their spears and shield-handles and even aircraft wings on the De Havilland Mosquito which flew in World War II. Average height is 15-30m.
Beech - Fagus sylvatica ~ Beech is one the most common introduced tree to Scotland, native to temperate Europe, Asia and North America and has been widely planted and naturalised in Scotland. It grows on a wide range of soil types, but does not like acid wet soils. The tree canopy casts dense shade, carpets the ground with dense leaf litter, and the ground flora beneath may be sparse. This large deciduous tree will form a noble specimen or can be trimmed to form an excellent hedge. The leaves turn a rich golden-copper colour in autumn and on clipped hedges they are retained making it colourful and windproof through most of the winter. It is also a valuable timber tree. After 10 years in reasonable growing conditions it will reach a height of well over 6m (20ft) but it can be pruned hard at any time of year. Beech mast (seed) is a popular food for birds especially finches and wood pigeons.
Silver Birch - Betula pendula ~ Birch is the most common native tree in Scotland, a medium sized, white-stemmed deciduous tree described as the “Lady of the Woods”. Silver birch will grow in poor soils, but likes a sunny position with good drainage, is fast growing, reaching a height of up to 30 metres. As a pioneer species, they are short-lived, with typical lifespan being between 60-90 years old, although some individuals can live up to 150 years. The trees are slender with fine branches and small leaves, with their trunks not normally exceeding a diameter of 40cm at breast height. The springtime flowers are catkins which stay on the tree and contain the mature seed by autumn, popular with the small seed-eating birds. One of the important functions which birch trees fulfil in ecosystems is that of improving soils. They are deep-rooted, and their roots draw up nutrients into their branches and leaves, which the trees use for their growth. Some of these nutrients are returned to the surface of the soil each year when the leaves fall in the autumn, thereby becoming available for other organisms in the forest community.
Hazel - Corylus avellana ~ Native to Britain and Ireland, hardy shrub, coppices easily producing straight poles/handles with high conservation value. Good shelter for wildlife and produces edible nuts in autumn. Hazel is a member of the birch family of trees, Betulaceae, and can grow to a height of 10 metres, although in Scotland it is usually no more than 6 metres tall. Hazel's ability to produce multiple stems gives it a dense, spreading appearance and has led to its extensive use for coppicing. It is a short-lived tree, reaching 50-70 years in age, but if it is coppiced, either by people or naturally through damage to its trunks, it can live for several hundred years. Hazel is very important for lichens and is the best host species in the UK for Graphidion lichens. In Scotland hazel normally occurs as an understorey component in deciduous forests characterised by oaks, ash or birch.
Horse Chestnut – Aesculus hippocastanum ~ The children's favourite because after its spires of white blossom the seeds develop into spiny green cases around the glossy brown chestnuts – conkers. Horse Chestnut also form fine specimen trees, and germinate readily from their conkers. Seedlings need plenty of space to grow – and adult trees even more! Horse Chestnut is native to a small area in the mountains of the Balkans in southeast Europe, areas in northern, Albania, the Republic of Macedonia, Serbia, and Bulgaria but is widely cultivated throughout the temperate world. Cultivation for its spectacular spring flowers is successful in a range of climatic conditions, with trees being grown as far north as the Faroe Islands and Norway. In more southern areas, growth is best in cooler mountain climates. The common name horse-chestnut is reported as having originated from the erroneous belief that the tree was a kind of chestnut, together with the observation that eating them cured horses of chest complaints despite this plant being poisonous to horses. The nuts, especially those that are young and fresh, are slightly poisonous, although not dangerous to touch, they cause sickness when eaten; consumed by horses, they can cause tremors and lack of coordination. Some mammals, notably deer, are able to break down the toxins and eat them safely.
Oak ~ Pedunculate - Quercus robur / Sessile – Quercus petraea ~ Both Oak species found in the West coast, coppices freely, very high conservation value. Like other trees the best oaks grow on the best soils but the sessile oak will tolerate thin soil on rocky ground and needs a well drained site. The Pedunculate oak can grow on heavy lowland soils and can withstand wet soil in winter. Traditionally there have been four main uses of oak. The most prominent is as a timber tree. Oak was a highly prized timber and was particularly used in ship building in the days of wooden ships. Its timber is also used in buildings, for furniture and a whole range of other uses. Sessile oak timber resists penetration by liquids along with its straight close grain, makes it ideal for barrels and casks. The other uses include the bark which was used for tanning leather; the acorns which were used for fattening pigs as they are a rich food source; and like many other trees the smaller branches and twigs were used for firewood or charcoal making. Slow to grow but very long lived. Average height is 15-30m. Oak is an extremely valuable wildlife tree fot the whole of its long life, supporting the largest number of insect species of any native tree. They grow into wonderful huge trees, which may live for a hundred years.
Rowan - Sorbus aucuparia ~ A small attractive native woodland edge tree with high conservation value. The creamy flowers ripen into scarlet berries which attract migrant birds and a mistle thrush will defend rowan tree or holly as its territory, not for nesting, but through the winter as its feeding territory. Rowan grows in most parts of Britain, but is more common in the north and west, and is found throughout Scotland. It grows at a higher altitude than any other tree in the country and occurs at elevations of almost 1,000 metres in parts of the Highlands: its other common name is Mountain Ash. Rowan is a fast-growing, short-lived pioneer tree in the rose family, Rosaceae. It is typically a small tree, reaching a maximum height of 10-15 metres, or exceptionally, 20 metres. Rowan is a good host tree for lichens, and is the second best in the UK for Graphidion lichens. The wood is tough and strong, and was traditionally used for handles of tools, cart-wheels and planks or beams. Rowan berries can be eaten by humans and can be used to make jellies to accompany meat.
Whitebeam – Sorbus aria ~ The Whitebeam are members of the Rosaceae family. They are related to the rowans, and many of the endemic restricted-range apomictic microspecies of whitebeam in Europe are thought to derive from hybrids between S. aria and the European rowan; some are also thought to be hybrids with the Wild Service Tree, notably the Service Tree of Fontainebleau in French woodlands. The surface of the leaf is an unremarkable mid-green, but the underside is almost white (hence the name) transforming the appearance of the tree in strong winds, as noted by the poet Meridith: "flashing as in gusts the sudden-lighted whitebeam". The cream flowers ripen to red berries a favourite of birds, though less palatable (drier, less juicy) than rowan berries. Whitebeams are sometimes used as larval food plants by Lepidoptera species including Short-cloaked Moth. The wood is hard, and suited for woodturning, furniture and tool handles, a tough wood that was used to make cogs before the use of iron.
Hawthorn – Crataegus monogyna ~ Hawthorn or White thorn was planted in hedges throughout our countryside. Its sweet smelling 'May' blossom is a feature that month, and in atumn and winter the deep red haws colour the bare twigs. They are among the berries most favoured by birds. Only untrimmed hawthorn can flower and fruit freely, but hedges have to be cut to be cut to keep them stock proof. Hawthorn hedges may be trimmed regularly, or left for several years and then laid by cutting part-way through the main stems and laying these horizontally through the hedge. Even old hawthorn hedges will regenerate if trunks are cut back to base and left to sprout again, but these must be fenced off so that farm livestock cannot reach the tasty young shoots and eat them. Like many other shrubs, hawthorn also grows in woodland where there is enough light – in open glades, along 'rides' through the woodland, or along the edge. A single tree may be left in a field as a 'fairy thorn', especially where there may be an archaeological site.
PRICES FOR ALL TREES
15cm – 30cm / 2yrs = £2each
30cm – 50cm / 3yrs = £3each
50cm – 100cm+ / 4-5yrs = £5
