Category: Trees

Trees

The Magic of Oak

Wild Fen

Oak trees support more life than any other native tree, providing food and shelter to hundreds of species of insects, birds, mammals and fungi. They live long lives (between 700 – 1000 years) and bring stability and support to the environment around them. Their roots delve as deep as their branches open wide, giving them balance and a deep rootedness that supports their vast presence.

This iconic tree has shaped human evolution and we have an intrinsic connection to them in this landscape. We have walked beside them for thousands of years, feeding on their acorns, building boats and homes from their wood and navigating by, and meeting beneath their sheltering branches.

In this post we will be sharing more about our journey getting to know this wonderful tree and its symbolism and associations…

Continue reading “The Magic of Oak” →
Trees, Wild Jewellery

The Magic of the Apple Tree

Wild Fen

Apple trees hold such rich symbolism in our culture and have inspired artwork, poetry, fairy tale and song throughout the ages. They are often associated with the season of Samhain when their branches hang heavy with beautiful, nourishing fruits. They are also celebrated widely in Spring too when they are filled with fragrant blossom.

Continue reading “The Magic of the Apple Tree” →
Trees, Wild Jewellery

The Magic of Blackthorn

Wild Fen

Blackthorns are part of the Rose family that alongside roses also include Hawthorns, Rowans, Crab Apple and Wild Cherry trees. This family holds deep magic at any time of year, but particularly in early Spring when their blossom is in bloom and Autumn when their branches hang abundant with rich fruits, a nourishing glut that generously supports life moving into the Winter months.

Beautiful Blackthorn Blossom
Inky Sloe Berries
Continue reading “The Magic of Blackthorn” →
Botanicals, Trees

A note about resin

Wild Fen

Resin is an amazing substance produced by certain trees in response to damage. The sticky substance has antibacterial properties, acting as a healing plaster for the tree that seals the wound and prevents the tree from further damage or infection.

Alongside its wealth of medicinal properties, resins often have beautiful aromas and have been gathered for use in incense and medicine for thousands of years. Well known and loved examples of tree resins include Frankincense, Copal and Myrrh. Frankincense in particular is one of the oldest traded commodities in the world spanning at least 5,000 years and anyone lucky enough to have smelt this resin burning will understand why it is so revered…

Continue reading “A note about resin” →
Trees

If you go down to the woods today…

Wild Fen

…you may be in for a big surprise, (but more on that later!) This is one of my favourite times of year to spend in the woods. The hedgerows are bursting with colourful berries and ripening acorns adorn the Oaks. It is an in between time where the green leaves feel as though they are making the most of the last days before they fall and I am so grateful to still be enjoying them for a little longer…

In the spirit of balance (so apt for this time of year) we spent much of yesterday’s Autumn Equinox crafting Jewellery, packing up orders and filling in our tax return so today we headed out early to visit our new local woodland. It was a glorious, blue skied Autumn day, we filled our mouths with blackberries and our pockets with rosehips and hawthorn berries. I shall be drying them out over the next week to make an oxymel with them.

Continue reading “If you go down to the woods today…” →
Trees

The Magic of Ash

Wild Fen

I had never much connected with Ash trees before this year and yet over recent months, they have become one of my strongest plant allies.

Before I talk more about the wonderful qualities of Ash trees, let me first explain a little more about the way I connect with plants and how this process has evolved over the years. My interest in plants grew upon discovering some of the medicinal and healing properties of the herbs that I was growing within my garden. I spent much time researching their qualities and experimenting using them in teas, bath soaks and other herbal remedies. It was a brilliant way to kindle my fascination with plants and open my mind to the healing held within so much of that which is found around us.

Over the years, the way I connect with plants has become more intuitive. It often begins with me noticing a certain plant whilst out on a walk. It seems to catch my attention and I feel pulled to get to know more about it. Often now, if the species is new to me, I find the name comes to me somehow too, a knowing of the plant arising from somewhere within.

Continue reading “The Magic of Ash” →
Trees

The Magic of Box

Wild Fen

Box is one of our 5 native evergreen trees in the UK alongside Yew, Scots Pine, Juniper and Holly. It is now most commonly thought of as a neatly trimmed garden shrub however was once a more common feature in our woodlands.

Small pockets of ancient Box woodland remain in the UK. Most notably on Box Hill in Surrey with other patches found in the Chilterns and Cotswolds. They are truly magical places to visit and provide stable, protective environments for rare lichens and insects amongst other wildlife.

Continue reading “The Magic of Box” →
Trees

The magic of Rowan

Wild Fen

Rowan trees are sometimes known as ‘Mountain Ash’ or ‘Lady of the Mountains’ due to their ability to grow higher up mountain sides than any of our other native trees. They grow quite happily in our towns and parks too, but survive, and even thrive in some of our harshest landscapes. They protect and nurture other trees around them in those environments too by improving the fertility of the soil, similar to Birch trees, earning them the title of ‘nurse tree’.

Rowan trees symbolise protection, resilience and adaptability and bringing them into the home for protection is a long standing tradition. Due to them standing high on the top of mountains they have also been connected with magic, intuition and connecting to other realms.

Rowan blossom in the Spring
Rowan berries in the Autumn

Ancient Rowan traditions

Making and hanging Rowan berry garlands around the home is an ancient tradition, believed to protect the space and invite good luck. Berries are gathered and garlands made as we head towards the Autumn months, crossing the threshold to the darker half of the year. Once dried, the garlands keep for years, bringing a rich pop of colour and magic to the home.

Continue reading “The magic of Rowan” →
Trees

The Magic of Beech

Wild Fen

The majestic Beech tree is a joy to witness and spend time with at any time of year. In Autumn she stands ablaze with her fiery orange crown, cloaking the forest floor beneath her with smooth, rusty leaves. Winter is a time to admire her smooth, grey bark before she unfurls her heart nurturing, protective green canopy in the Spring.

Continue reading “The Magic of Beech” →
Trees

The Magic of Elder

Wild Fen

As I write this at the beginning of June, Elder trees are amass with creamy white blossoms that fill hedgerows and paths with their delicate scent and rich abundance. I love this time of year, gathering a couple of flower heads along my walks, returning to enjoy a daily Elderflower Brew.

Abundant Elderflowers
A daily Elderflower brew
Continue reading “The Magic of Elder” →