Our 31st tree, Sea Buckthorn (Hippophae rhamnoides). Often derided for its rapacious spread in areas where it might not be entirely wanted, the Sea Buckthorn is a species that helped provide a roothold for almost everyother tree species on the British Isles. Add into the mix a bit about Genghis Khan, Flying Horses and perhaps one of the greatest sorbets our host has ever eaten, and you're looking at a wonder of a tree. (Special thanks to Gavin Drea and Dara McAnulty for all adding their voices t...
Aug 10, 2021•14 min•Season 3Ep. 20
Our twenty-ninth tree, Common Buckthorn (Rhamnus cathartica) , and our thirtieth tree, Alder Buckthorn (Frangula alnus) - The BUCKTHORNS of the Rhamnaceae. Their unripe berries made paint pigment that was stored in a pig’s bladder, their charcoal made gunpowder that has defined a society and their toxic seeds have made humans purge their bowels making countless regretful foragers! Our Buckthorns are an easily ignorable shrub that have left an indelible mark upon humankind. (Special thanks to Ian...
Aug 03, 2021•16 min•Season 3Ep. 19
Our twenty-eigth tree, the Rowan (Sorbus aucuparia) . One of the most elegant and tasteful (not to mention tasty - to birds) trees that you can find throughout the British Isles. It has been worshipped by Pagans and Christians alike for its spiritual power and symbolism. It repels witches, frustrates adders, arouses dairymaids, seduces birds and stops Norse Thunder-gods from drowning in piss. This is the “bird-catcher”, "tank-destroyer" and “human-fascinator”; a tree revered for centuries; a tre...
Jul 27, 2021•16 min•Season 3Ep. 18
Our twenty-seventh tree, the Wild Service Tree (Sorbus torminalis). Colourful, mysterious and increasingly rare, the Wild Service represents a midway point - not only between the Rowan and the Whitebeam, but between what our forests look like, and what our forests looked like. They’re associated with Olde English Taverns and with ancient Roman drinking sessions, with medieval French jousting, and so abundantly slathered in folk names that it’s a travesty their current common name is so unbelieva...
Jul 20, 2021•16 min•Season 3Ep. 17
Our twenty-sixth tree, the Whitebeam (Sorbus aria). What the stately and elegant Whitebeam lacks in folklore, it makes up for with its proclivity to cross-pollinate and hybridise. David heads out into the wild, to Cheddar Gorge - the location of a very rare, and only recently discovered sub-species of the Whitebeam - to discuss the way in which species evolve from one to another, and to dig a little deeper into the confusingly murky waters of taxonomical nomenclature. The German forester, Peter ...
Jul 13, 2021•11 min•Season 3Ep. 16
Our twenty-fourth and twenty-fifth trees are the Common Hawthorn (Crataegus monogyna) & the Midland Thorn (Crataegus laevigata) . Once David stops blathering about the ‘Holy Thorn’ - a fascinating twice-flowering genetic variant of the Hawthorn that has inspired pilgrimages and postal stamps - he’ll tell you why one Hawthorn is far more prevalent than the other (despite the opposite originally being true), how superstitious the Irish are about their bushes, and why Shakespeare May or May not...
Jul 06, 2021•16 min•Season 3Ep. 15
Our twenty-third tree is the Crab Apple (Malus sylvestris) - the ‘Forest apple’. The apple is perhaps our most important fruit from a cultural perspective, but it would be NOTHING without its little crab parent. They made Shakespeare sexy, they made the Norse Gods immortal, and without the Crabs our nation’s biodiversity would be missing a massively integral player. This week David talks Auroch poop, Celtic party games and the origins of the apple’s “Englishness”. (Many thanks to Adam Sopp for h...
Jun 29, 2021•16 min•Season 3Ep. 14
Our twenty-second tree, the Wild Pear (Pyrus pyraster) … or to be more precise, this is an episode exploring the three Wild Pears that you my find growing wild on the British Isles: the aforementioned Wild Pear, the European Pear (Pyrus communis) and the Plymouth Pear (Pyrus cordata) . Currently, the thinking is that none of these three trees are strictly native, but doing an episode on pears gives me an excuse to discuss Grecian infanticide and matricide, Shakespearean euphemisms for ‘a syphili...
Jun 22, 2021•16 min•Season 3Ep. 13
Our twentieth and twenty-first trees, the Wild Cherry (Prunus avium) and the Bird Cherry (Prunus padus) . Yes, you knew cherries are tasty, but did you know they’re so delectable that they have their own bodyguards? Yes, you know about the Japanese cherry blossom front, but did you also know that cherry blossom adorned the fuselage of kamikaze pilots? And, yes, you obviously knew that Henry the VIII loved his food, but did you know he loved his cherries so much that he put a bounty on the heads ...
Jun 15, 2021•19 min•Season 3Ep. 12
Our nineteenth tree, Blackthorn (Prunus spinosa) . As one of the first trees of our Rose family (the Rosaceae), this tree - when it blossoms in early February - is unsurprisingly beautiful to behold! But beneath the blossom lies black magic, butchery, even beastiality, and lots and lots of sloe-based boooooze! Brimming with folklore and mystery, and a home to birds that unfortunately have a second home upon the IUCN Red List, this hardy tree is a vital member of the British landscape and imagina...
Jun 08, 2021•12 min•Season 3Ep. 11
Richard Nairn is an environmental scientist and naturalist with a lifetime of experience in applied ecology, conservation and learning from the wild world around him. Having recently purchased a piece of ancient native woodland in County Wicklow, Ireland, here Richard shares the lessons these woods have taught him. From the importance of woodland management, to the vitality deriving from a community’s support (or ‘Meithal’ in Gaelic). These woodlands have proved a bottomless source of Wisdom; kn...
Jun 04, 2021•49 min•Season 3Ep. 10
Our seventeenth and eighteenth trees, the White (Populus alba) and Grey (Populus x canescens) Poplars. As our two native Poplars - the Black and the Aspen - are becoming increasingly rare on the British Isles, I’ve treated myself to a couple of bonus trees that are relatively common here, but not strictly native species - for, as I'm sure you're all well aware: “Once you Poplar, you can’t Stop-lar...” Anyway... The White Poplar (non-native) is steeped in European Myth and Legend, which gives me ...
Jun 01, 2021•9 min•Season 3Ep. 9
Our sixteenth tree, the Aspen (Populus tremula) is a gentle giant. Beautiful long leaf stalks keep the foliage fluttering in the wind and folklore galore alive in our jaw; whilst a secret that lies beneath the soil means these trees one day might dominate the globe (sort of… their cousin is the largest organism on the planet!) And, despite LOVING beaver (sorry), they reproduce in a highly problematic fashion. All this, a life-shatteringly powerful recital of some Gerard Manley Hopkins from Sam W...
May 25, 2021•12 min•Season 3Ep. 8
Our fifteenth tree (and don’t go fearing you’ve missed a few episodes, our last episode just included a bumper crop of Willows), the Black Poplar (Populus nigra) , is one of my very favourites species - but unfortunately increasingly rare. It plays a role - according to the Greek Myth - into why we have the climate we have, its wood is fire resistant - making it invaluable in the development of modern society, and it is one of the most attractive and noble looking trees in our British woodlands....
May 18, 2021•11 min•Season 3Ep. 7
Our sixth tree… well, actually, our sixth, seventh, eighth, all the way up to our fourteenth tree; this episode is a whole riverbank full of filthy depraved sex-obsessed Wanton Willows ( Sexy Salix spp.) - both native varieties and archaeophytes. The willow is an amazing coloniser - which is one reason why the British Isles boasts so many unique species and hybrids - imbued with an obsession of having sex with anything even remotely similar! This episode explores hybridisation, colonisation, pol...
May 11, 2021•15 min•Season 3Ep. 6
Our fifth tree, the Spindle (Euonymus europaeus) is a stunner. Sexy in pink! Unsurpassed in vibrancy by any of our other native trees. This week, David looks at the secrets behind its many names, why Linnaeus loved it so much, and how it could be harbouring a worryingly dark secret. More from David Oakes as he uproots the secrets and stories beneath the 56(ish) Native Trees of the British Isles can be found at: https://www.treesacrowd.fm/56Trees/ Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more i...
May 04, 2021•7 min•Season 3Ep. 5
Our fourth tree, the Box (Buxus sempervirens) is a much maligned tree. It has been disregarded by monarchy, slandered by legendary (and hunky) herbalists, but without it we would be without music, art and literature. Used for wood-block printing, making oboes and flutes, and (admittedly loosely) providing inspiration to Jane Austen... We owe this tree a great deal. More from David Oakes as he uproots the secrets and stories beneath the 56(ish) Native Trees of the British Isles can be found at: h...
Apr 27, 2021•8 min•Season 3Ep. 4
Our third tree, the Scots Pine (Pinus sylvestris) has a rich association with English Theatre - something David knows about far too well. But, more important than that, the association this increasingly rare tree has with ancient forests, and the biodiversity within them, is unsurpassed. A stunning keystone species in its own right. More from David Oakes as he uproots the secrets and stories beneath the 56(ish) Native Trees of the British Isles can be found at: https://www.treesacrowd.fm/56Trees...
Apr 20, 2021•8 min•Season 3Ep. 3
Our second tree, the Juniper (Juniperus communis), holds the secret of gin within its berries - need it offer more?! But it also possesses many other medicinal secrets besides. This episode begins in the Oregon badlands, before returning to Europe and the rich history of a genuine obsession with Juniper - an obsession that may not last forever. More from David Oakes as he uproots the secrets and stories beneath the 56(ish) Native Trees of the British Isles can be found at: https://www.treesacrow...
Apr 20, 2021•9 min•Season 3Ep. 2
Our first tree, the Yew (Taxus baccata), has accompanied humanity since the very beginning, giving us the opportunity for longer life and a rapid death. The oldest human made tool is made of Yew, and the tree’s toxins hold a deadly poison and a remedy for cancer. This and much more; there is perhaps no other British tree with such an in-depth relationship with mankind. More from David Oakes as he uproots the secrets and stories beneath the 56(ish) Native Trees of the British Isles can be found a...
Apr 20, 2021•8 min•Season 3Ep. 1
In season three of Trees A Crowd, David Oakes uproots the secrets and stories beneath the native tree species of the British Isles. Each week for the next few months, Oakes is going to be exploring our trees - from Scots Pine to Privet; Box, Beech and the Buckthorns; Wild cherries, wild pears and wild apples; Ash, Aspen, Alder, Elder and Elm... and many more (56 of them to be precise-ish!) But what is a Native Tree? Firstly, by 'tree' he means a woody plant that can, in the wild, reach at least ...
Apr 16, 2021•3 min
In part two of this conversation with Dr George McGavin, we find out that he has not one, but five bugs named after him - one of which was given to him by the ‘world cockroach expert’ ! If there’s a better measure for knowing how influential you’ve been in your field, we haven’t heard of it. George and David go on to discuss the human flesh-eating larvae of the botfly, and the memory of cutting open the poisoned insides of a dead harbour porpoise, alongside other poignant thoughts about man’s im...
Oct 05, 2020•37 min•Season 2Ep. 27
Dr George McGavin is a zoologist, entomologist and broadcaster, and currently serves as President for the Dorset Wildlife Trust. Best known for hosting documentaries including ‘Lost Land of the Volcano’, ‘Oak Tree: Nature’s Greatest Survivor’ and, most recently, ‘Ocean Autopsy: The Secret Story of Our Seas’, he is also well known to television viewers for his frequent appearances on BBC One’s ‘The One Show’. Sitting down to chat in post-lockdown June, in the heart of Windsor Great Park, David Oa...
Sep 28, 2020•54 min•Season 2Ep. 26
Happy World Manta Day! To celebrate the wonders of our ocean’s Flappiest Friends, this special episode explores the experiences and encounters of Manta Trust patron and legendary explorer-cameraman, Doug Allan. Described by Sir David Attenborough as one of the world’s greatest natural history cameramen, Doug Allan’s work speaks for itself. In fact, head to our website now to see some footage of both Doug and Manta Rays in action. In this discussion, David Oakes discovers how, although training t...
Sep 17, 2020•1 hr 18 min•Season 2Ep. 25
In the final of three episodes focused on Animal Conservation, David Oakes speaks again (you’ll remember him from his Narwhal-centric episode at the top of this season) to Mark Carwardine - zoologist, conservationist, broadcaster and photographer. Having been out on foot patrols upon most of the planet’s continents, Mark explains the realities of being a wildlife ranger. The risks of poachers, animals and accidents; the reality of spending weeks on end away from civilisation, safe drinking water...
Sep 14, 2020•37 min•Season 2Ep. 24
Georgina Lamb is the Chief Executive of the David Shepherd Wildlife Foundation. The charity was founded by her grandfather, the late great artist Sir David Shepherd, and funds key conservation projects across the world. This conversation touches on the history of Shepherd, a man who dedicated his life to force change, and whose paintings are the stuff of legends - one even featured on the wall of the living room in “Only Fools and Horses”! As the second in our series on Wildlife Conservation, th...
Aug 31, 2020•50 min•Season 2Ep. 23
Will Travers OBE is one of the UK’s most influential animal rights activists, founding the Born Free Foundation in 1984 with his parents, originally under the name Zoo Check. As most of the world has been placed under strict lockdown and quarantine rules, we’re beginning to get a glimpse into what life must be like for animals trapped in zoos, forced to live in confined spaces under lock and key “for not much more than our own amusement”. Born Free’s latest campaign, “Creature Discomforts”, tack...
Aug 17, 2020•35 min•Season 2Ep. 22
As kismet would have it, it’s WORLD OYSTER DAY! Before we found out oysters even had their own day, we wanted to celebrate these slippery salt-water molluscs because it turns out, when gathered together, they’re quite amazing and could provide natural solutions to many of mankind’s biggest environmental problems. Familiar voice, friend of the show, marine ecologist and fisheries biologist, Bryce Stewart, kicks us off with an answer to the most important question asked this week, “Why don't you c...
Aug 05, 2020•38 min•Season 2Ep. 21
“Bats are awesome and endlessly fascinating” - and it’s a good job too, because this is the second part of a two-part conversation all about the flying mammals! After rain stopped play last week, this in-depth conversation with Prof. Kate Jones (UCL’s resident bat expert and Harrison Ford worrier) picks back up by pitting megabats against microbats. From there we discuss how the US army attempted to militarise bats, how bats are helping to save humans billions of pounds, how to make your garden ...
Jul 27, 2020•37 min•Season 2Ep. 20
Part Indiana Jones, part David Attenborough - and a real live descendant of Charles “Origin of the Species” Darwin - Professor Kate Jones is a professor of ecology and biodiversity at UCL. A previous recipient of the Leverhulme award, she spends a LOT of time researching the relationships between animals and humans, in particular keeping an eye on mammals and the infectious diseases they may happen to pass onto us (think SARS, think Ebola, oh, and think COVID-19.) On top of that, she is one of t...
Jul 20, 2020•44 min•Season 2Ep. 19
