Dear Readers, today was intended to be a walk through three woods – Cherry Tree, Highgate and Queen’s Wood. However, Mother Nature intervened, and the winds of Storm Amy meant that the latter two woods were closed in case a branch fell on someone’s head – sensible following a fatality a few years ago when a tree fell on a car and killed a poor young woman. Still, Cherry Tree Wood was open and it is very clearly a mast year, for oak at least – the jays and the squirrels will be delighted, I’m sure, but they won’t be able to eat everything, and this is the point – at least some acorns will survive to make little oak trees. Mast years usually happen after a warm, dry spring, and occur every five to ten years – making acorns needs a lot of energy and plentiful resources, so the tree can’t do it every year.

You may well have noticed a lot of other berries about – hawthorn seems to be having a great year, as do rowan trees, and there are lots of rose hips about too. The birds will have a good autumn, by the look of it.

Then we head towards Queen’s Wood, in blissful ignorance of the fact that the place is closed. Still, we pass this poor tree at the corner of Fordington Road and Woodside Avenue. It was cut down because it was unwell (and I think it really was) but still, what a shame….

As we walked up the path towards Highgate Wood, a young woman stopped us to tell us the wood was closed, which saved us a stiff-ish and frustrating climb. So, we decided to head to Muswell Hill for a bagel at Roni’s Bagel Bakery. En route, we passed this amazing hydrangea – it’s been a very good year for them…

We walk up past some allotments and the trees are laden down with crab apples…

I’ve written before about how the bark seems to peel off of at least some plane trees when it’s very dry and hot (I know they always lose some bark, but it’s much worse when the weather is more extreme). Have a look at these…

But I love the bark on these River Birch trees….

 

We cut through an alleyway to Fortis Green Road. Just look at the colour on this Virginia Creeper, pouring over a wall in a carpark…

And here’s a quick look at this amazing Arts and Crafts building on Fortis Green Road, Birchwood Mansions. I’ve written about this area before, but it’s always a pleasure to walk around….

And then we go into the new bookshop right opposite, and I find this!

It was last updated in 1971, but who cares? I love a ‘New Naturalist’, so much love and attention went into every one of them, and this one features several illustrations of  jumping spiders courting, so that’s me sold….

Anyway, then it’s time to head home.  Look at this magnificent Norway Maple on Twyford Avenue!

And finally, a quick nod to the Michaelmas Daisies. I love these flowers, and the way they offer some of the last nectar and pollen of the summer to bees and hoverflies. Truly, a great plant for late-summer/autumn colour in any garden. There is such abundance of colour and form at this time of year, for those of us in the Northern Hemisphere at least. It’s well worth taking a breezy walk to soak it all in.