Leader: Hugh Williamson
Opened in 1830 by Princess Victoria, the Royal Victoria Park was one of the first municipal parks in Britain. Home to a fantastic collection of trees some of which are part of the original planting, winter is a great time to explore details less visible in summer months. The structure of deciduous trees can be seen clearly, and evergreen species are spotted readily. On a dry, slightly misty January day we set off from the east end of the park to explore trees: bark, buds, patterns of branching, signs of grafting and suckers.
Our first stop was at a stump, the remains of a Kentucky Coffee Tree outcompeted by a Coast Redwood planted nearby. A search of the undergrowth revealed long suckers, leaf stalks of the felled tree. These grow up to 1m long with 8-14 oval, soft, hairy dark green leaflets. Also known as the Stump Tree, Glymnocladus dioica is a member of the pea family. Its seeds were roasted and ground for use as a coffee substitute (hence its common name). This tree was mentioned in ‘A Manual of the Park’, by Fredrick Hanham in 1857.
Walking along the path to the back of the bandstand, we admired the bark of a Red Snake-bark Maple and noticed the contrast between Horse Chestnut with orange and purple bark alongside the grey and greeny-brown of the Sycamore nearby. In the lawn were signs of suckers from a felled English Elm. Hugh Williamson noted that a search in the undergrowth would reveal signs of the mother tree not far away. Originally a variety of elms were planted along the south side of the Royal Avenue. However Dutch Elm disease led to the death of many mature elms including those along the avenue bar one, the Caucasian Elm just inside the gates. The species was described as characteristically ‘goblet-shaped’ in identification books. However, the specimen brought back to Britain by James Gordon was not typical, hence the varietal name Zelkova carpinifolia ‘James Gordon’. Most of the Caucasian Elms seen in the UK are descendants of these rather than the typical fastigiate form!
Crossing Marlborough Buildings towards the Victoria Obelisk we stopped at the first of five oak species on our walk, Turkey Oak, Quercus cerris, a deciduous species. Oaks are deciduous or evergreen species, but all have leaves arranged alternately, often lobed, and the fruit are single acorns. Turkey Oak has deeply lobed leaves with a tooth at the end of each lobe. Holm Oak, Quercus ilex, found further along the Carriage Drive, is evergreen with elliptical untoothed leaves with tiny, pointed acorns. Lucumbe Oak, a hybrid between Turkey Oak and Cork Oak, has amazing grey, corky bark. Its leaves are also toothed but not as deeply lobed as Turkey Oak. A large Common Oak, Quercus robur, seen on the lawn above the Duck Pond, is believed to have been planted to celebrate Queen Victoria’s Golden Jubilee. It has acorns on long stalks whilst the lobed leaves have short stalks. The last oak on our walk, Red Oak Quercus rubra, was seen opposite Cow Lane. Its leaves have long slim lobes with pointy end. The leaves turn the most amazing reddy-brown in the autumn.
Common Lime in Victoria Park © Kate Souter
The long arching shape of Common Lime branches makes this species stand out from others in winter. In the original planting plan ten individuals were located along Royal Avenue. Epicormic growth (sprouts at the base of the trunk) is characteristic of this species.
Many unusual species of tree were introduced by plant explorers. These include two deciduous conifers found at the edge of the duck pond. To the east of the pond is the Dawn Redwood, Metasequoia glyptostroboides. It was first identified from a fossil record. A seat surrounds the Swamp Cypress, Taxodium distichum, and it is worth pausing for a closer look at the soft, feathery leaves. Nearby is the Caucasian Wingnut, Pterocarya fraxinifolia. It suckers prolifically and a veritable forest of them are emerging in the lawn to the north of the pond.
Some specimens in the park show evidence of grafting. This is where a shoot from one species is joined to the rootstock of another species to create a more robust tree. A rare example is Acer pseudoplatanus var. tomentosum, where a hairy form of sycamore has been grafted on to a Common Sycamore rootstock.
There are only 3 ‘true’ species of Cedar in Britain, two of which are to be seen north of the Victoria Obelisk. The Blue Atlas, a form of Atlas Cedar, Cedrus atlantica ‘Glauca’, has grey-blue needle-like leaves. Its branches point upwards at the ends. The Cedar of Lebanon, Cedrus libani, has branches with endings that point neither up nor down. All Cedar species have barrel shaped cones which are attached to the upper surface of branches.
Our final stop was at a beautiful tree on the North side of the Royal Avenue at the east end of the lawn, a Black Pine, Pinus nigra. It has paired needles and the scaly bark, with blotches of yellow suggesting that this may be a variety known as ‘Crimean’ rather than ‘Corsican’.
Thanks go to Hugh Williamson for an amazing tour of Royal Victoria Park. For Tree Trail guides in and around Bath as well as further information visit bathurbantreescape.com.
Kate Souter
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