Very Important Trees!

I'm currently leading a series of walks along the Water of Leith, telling people about the natural history and the industrial history of the river. It's a fascinating river and I think everyone is enjoying finding more out about the area!

Today we were in Craiglockart Dell (part of the stretch of the river that I regularly look after for the Water of Leith Conservation Trust). The autumn colours were magnificent (they're a little further on now than in this photo, which I took last week. I don't generally take my camera on these walks to avoid it distracting me from leading the walk!)

The Dell is a wonderful area of woodland, described as ancient woodland as it has been consistently wooded since at least 1750, though it's not an entirely natural wood as many of the trees were deliberately planted by the owners of the country estates that used to own this land or in the case of the hornbeams the mill owners planted them as their wood is so hard and useful for making waterwheels.

Trees are so important to our landscapes, for keeping our air clean and for their aesthetic value! That's why the Woodland Trust is calling for an official register to classify, celebrate and protect the UKs best loved trees! You can find out more here!