The Old Man of Calke
For over a 1000 years this venerable old Oak tree has stood the test of time. In winters sun it looks its age with spindle branches on the hollow but still stout trunk. Fast forward a few months, it is always a joy to see that it has survived another winter….indeed sporting another fine thick headdress of leaves lush green leaves…
For our small part of the UK it has been a grand weekend. Warm and sunny with blue skies…you can actually hear the garden grow as everything is now rushing headlong into summer.
The woodlands offered some welcome shade that gets darker beneath the canopy as each day goes by, the shade loving ferns are now starting to cover everywhere that feet don’t fall….
The Lake added some extra and very welcome cool. The water lilies have yet to burst but even so their rich green plate like leaves add to the waters beauty….
But is one weekend to enjoy just sitting in the shade be it woods or the garden and enjoying the bits and bobs it has to share with us…
But we also stumbled across some ‘Odds and Ends’ …. Out Door Art I suppose it is described as. The first piece is two circular barrel shaped pieces of stainless steel bolted to the side of a rather distinguished old tree…
No indicator to what it is ….But this is just outside of Derby, the home of Rolls Royce Aero Engines and also under the flight path of East Midlands Airport used for much of the day for Pilot training on large jets…so may be that is what it is, an aero engine…just a thought.
The other piece we found was much more in keeping with the surrounds. Made of woven willow and cane….
Still a guess as to what it is. From one direction it looks like a flower whilst from the other it the spread of wings of a large bird of prey. But look more closely…at the based is what I think is an Acorn and those leaves…are they Oak leaves?
5th May
(C) David Oakes 2017
DAVID OAKES - IMAGES. 
I can actually see him there in the trunk!
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Lots of folk can…but also wish he could speak and tell the tales he has seen 🙂
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An interesting post today! I live in the state in the US where the first Arbor Day in the country was celebrated. Over a million trees were planted that day in this praire state, and we still, over a century later, still venerate trees in a way that is obsessive. What a beautiful and venerable oak that is! I enjoyed seeing it! Bravo to all who chose not to cut it down or harm it for its long life!
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it is well protected and it has a few close cousins nearby. The best estimate is that it is a minimum of 1000 years old. Many like this one are hollow inside…that is the work of the Oak beetle which if it does its job right eats the middle whilst the outer trunk just gets thicker (and stronger) But even so 1000+ is some age. We have a saying that an Oak tree grows for 300 years, lives for 300 years, then dies for 300 years. Keep planting…we are 🙂
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Wonderful photos again, David. Thank you. Trees do speak… Or rather: they Twitter: https://treewatch.net/wageningen-university-research/?utm_source=tr.im&utm_medium=t.co&utm_campaign=tr.im%2FTWWUR&utm_content=link_click
I do get tweets how much it has grown in 24 hours, or whether the sap flow stops or starts again. Maybe, in the future we find out they can really speak. 🙂
By the way… Buster is a great guardian.
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I talk to the trees… I think they appreciate it but don’t talk back. Shame as they could tell some tales. 🙂
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Whenever I am in the woods I tend to touch trees. Some feel warm and welcoming. Others remain cold and distant. 😉
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