Tree-mendous trips both home and away
OUR most recent outing was doing a few miles around the Mearns village of Auchenblae.
The name derives from "auchen" meaning a field and "blae" referring to flowers or blossoms thus "a field of flowers."
Starting from the car park at the edge of the village we made our way along roads and tracks that eventually took us into Drumtochty Woods and to the car park there. Picnic tables invited a lunch stop. Near here among the trees stands one with a special history. Believed to have been planted in 1832 it is a Sitka Spruce introduced from the Western Pacific Coast of North America. It was last measured a quarter of a century ago when it had reached a height of 159 ft.
The road continues through the policies of Drumtochty Castle which has been used in a variety of roles over the years. Back in the 'seventies it was a preparatory school and later I remember having a meal there (only one) when it became a rather expensive restaurant. Nowadays it advertises itself as a location for wedding celebrations, business gatherings or, if you've a bob or two, a weekend retreat.
In the fields nearby they have kept a herd of bison for years. Only one, with its characteristic hump, was in evidence on this day in a fenced enclosure. Bison are, by nature, curious animals but can be aggressive when under threat and, for such a bulky animal, can be surprisingly fleet reaching speeds of 30 mph. We didn't hang around.
I've often seen foxes running around the hillsides in this area. We came across the body of a dead one impaled on a fence near to a pasture. There's a story there somewhere.
The track winded downwards to complete a circular to the village and we made our way back to our vehicles by way of the Old Distillery Dam an area where various agencies, including Scottish Natural Heritage, have planted flowers and shrubs in a natural setting which both enhances the area and encourages wildlife. (OS LANDRANGER SHEET 45).
The previous week Jean and I had spent a week in Provence. We'd not visited this part of France before. It is a place of great beauty now showing the first tints of autumn. Large fruit plantations spread across the countryside; plums, peaches, apricots, apples, olives and of course plentiful vineyards. Some of the wine is stored in hillside caverns.
The plane tree is in evidence everywhere in Provence. This deciduous broadleaf has a distinctive trunk which makes it readily recognizable. The ornamental bark flakes off exposing a white and smooth under-bark. Apart from London (it's sometimes referred to as the London Plane) I've not seen them in Britain which is surprising because I'm told that this bonny tree tolerates a wide range of climatic conditions.
Talking of trees, the Monday Walkers have been over the Cairn and walking in Deeside quite often this summer. En route we often pass the trees shown in my picture. This pair of Scots Pine are holding hands. They were first drawn to my attention twenty-five years ago and are believed to be 150 years old. They lie beside the B976 between the villages of Strachan and Finzean.
Two or three years ago in their "Past Times" section the "Press and Journal" published a photo taken in 1937 of four infants standing at the foot of these self-same trees which, even then looked well established. A few weeks after I had seen this photo I was in conversation with a near neighbour here in Brechin who was brought up in Finzean and it turned out that she was one of the children in this old photograph published in the press. How's that for a coincidence ?
Steve Woodward, an Aberdeen University forestry expert, has said that the Finzean pines are unique in his experience. He took his own photographs of the phenomenon and uses them in lectures to demonstrate to his students that trees can be fascinating. So they can.
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Weather for Brechin
Thursday 09 February 2012
Today
Light rain
Temperature: 3 C to 5 C
Wind Speed: 12 mph
Wind direction: South west
Tomorrow
Cloudy
Temperature: 3 C to 4 C
Wind Speed: 23 mph
Wind direction: South
