I’m now going to bore you some more with my trip to Chipping Campden. See, I think about you all the time, even on holiday, and I thought you might appreciate the trees.
Well, you might. I have come across people who hate the idea of doing anything but let a tree grow as it will, somehow thinking of pruning or shaping as cruelty to trees. They possibly even have a national society for the prevention of cruelty to trees. But one of the joys of my holiday were the carefully managed trees and shrubs.
A pruning nightmare.
The carefully pruned plant above must, I guess, be a wisteria. I understand they ought to be pruned twice a year to do their thing best. You will understand why I don’t have one.
Pollarded Trees
Below is a picture of a pollard. The late, great, Oliver Rackham wrote, in the only book I have ever read three times, (The History of the Countryside) “Almost all woods in Britain, though of natural origin, have been managed, often intensively, for centuries… Pollards are cut at between 6 and 15 feet above ground, leaving a permanent trunk called a bolling (to rhyme with rolling) which sprouts in much the same way as a coppice stool but out of reach of livestock.”
And now you know how to do it. But you mustn’t sit and smoke a pipe afterwards.
They have use in gardens and towns because they are kept smaller, create less shade, drop fewer dangerous branches and live longer. And I think they look great. Even in winter. (Especially with a blue sky)
I think this one has been pollarded then the branches have been chopped again later, .
With a view of St James Church
In that photograph you can see the church, and that church has some wonderful pollards.
Which I photographed for you. (and me)
Here is a long view.
And the other way round.
Ancient Lime Tree Pollards
I understand that the original lime trees were planted around 1770 and were intended to represent the twelve apostles. I wonder if anyone reading this wonders what on earth I’m on about? I recently heard of a teenager, asked, for her homework, to compare two parables. Apparently she said the homework was too hard and she had no idea what a parable is. Hm.
Five of the trees were replanted in 1929 but the others are likely to be originals.
It’s older than him.
This tree was on the shortlist for the Woodland Trust’s Tree of the Year 2022. This is an annual ‘tree of the year’ competition which “aims to highlight how vital trees are for our landscapes and our lives”. We had one of our own in Monmouthshire also on the list. .
This amazing specimen in the churchyard has a hollow trunk and a tree growing inside it:
And some ivy. Much maligned, that plant.
I’m not sure about the string of lights though… a bit undignified perhaps.
But the trees are incredibly imposing close to.
And, of course, in winter they look a bit dead.
But:
Amazing, there are the new shoots.
Additional Benefit of the Lime Trees
Some of the lime leaves which will soon emerge will be eaten by the caterpillars of many moth species, as well as aphids, which in turn will feed our birds and bees.
Job done.
Anne, thanks for taking us around Chipping Camden. I am fascinated by pollarding—very different than our familiar cut backs. We seldom see pollarding in Kentucky but cut backs under power lines are common. In the rural areas I also see also large trees cut back, though not pollarded since there is a fear, if they don’t whack the trees, they will fall on their homes. It’s not the good look of pollarded lime or a London plane. And I like the look of these. In the south, there is the de rigueur chop (“Crepe Murder”) on crepe myrtles (Lagestroemia). Not very pretty. I have a pollarded plane tree cultivar, Platanus x acerifolia ‘Suttneri’ , that I need to get to work on before it leafs out. Lovely mostly whitish bark.
Crepe murder is indeed a crime against nature, but careful and appropriate pruning of a crepe myrtle can produce a tree just as interesting as the pollards pictured in the article. I have some self-sown Chinese Parasol Trees (Firmiana simplex) in my garden which I cut to the ground about every three years. The new shoots from the stumps are culled to one, which then grows to a tall, single trunk with enormous, tropical-looking leaves. When it starts to branch at the top, it gets cut down again and a new shoot replaces the old. From an established root system, the new shoot can grow 8 feet or more a year. The same trick can be done with Princess Trees (Pauwlonia), if you want to take the chance of their flowering and spreading like crazy. Unlike Chinese Parasol, Princess Trees also will sprout enthusiastically from the root, sometimes far from the old trunk.
It’s not by any means a universal practice here – hence my delight. Currently the news seems full of councils cutting trees down to make ecological developments.
Why pollarding? The author misses the chance to explain that pollarding is a way of providing a constant source of thin, flexible shoots that can be used for many purposes, including basket-making, wattle-weaving and other applications where such shoots are needed. If allowed to grow for several seasons, the pollard’s shoots also provide firewood and light timber.
Good point.
I learned the hard way about crape murder, mine with their crowns of emaciated limbs. Enjoyed this post, always look forward to your rants.
Thanks Jean.
I first saw pollarded trees in Norway where it is practiced extensively. In my naiivity I asked if the trees were ill..it was early May. It was explained to me that the pollarding limited the tree’s size, opened up space for other plant life to grow, and enabled tree species to be planted in places where they would otherwise get too big. It still looked ugly to me but I wasn’t there when the trees were full.
Maybe you have to get your eye in, for something so particular?
I went to school in Chipping Campden and come from Ilmington just over the hill. Our churchyard limes are still beautifully pollarded but there is a problem with the willows in the fields that surround the village. We had the last hurdle maker in the country and he used the pollardings for his craft but since he retired these are not being cut and the trees are falling apart. It really needs a rural initiative to re-establish the craft. Apprenticeships are not possible as Michael Vincent, the hurdlemaker has since died, however the hurdles were much in demand so something could be done.
O, I do hope you enjoyed this trip. What a shame about the willows – I hope someone rescues them.
I love pruning. The comment about growing a larger growing tree in a smaller space is valid for me. also, it brings the plant into a more human scale somewhat like in ground bonsai but without the perfect scale of a detailed representation. The wisteria the author refers to appears to be a fig And a wonderful way too easily grow that fruit and many more. Great article!
That is some amazing fig – you think so? Wow. Could be – I know nothing of such things. Pruning is a real art.
‘Pollard’ is also a family name. ❤️ , , , and Anne Wareham’s rants!
(From , where spring is always an iffy proposition…).
Spring will come
When you said, “…and the church has some wonderful pollards” I saw that the tower itself seems to be pollarded. An ancient sturdy trunk, sporting new shoots.
Ha – indeed!
I understand pollarding is helpful with fruit trees, and I didn’t realize that the purpose was to provide thin shoots for use in fencing and support pole. That explains a lot. However, I have never liked the look. It destroys a tree’s beauty rather than enhancing it. Here we call it topping, and it’s very much discouraged, as it actually causes more branches and shade, rather than does a properly pruned tree. If you don’t want shade, don’t plant a tree. If you have a smaller space, then plant a tree that matures to a smaller size.
I’m not sure we should pollard fruit trees. Originally it saved trees from browsing animals and may still be useful for that purpose, or, as you say, for providing the useful shoots. Some of us love the result.
Topping is absolutely not the same as pollarding: you may find this article helpful: https://www.arboristnow.com/news/Pruning-Techniques-Pollarding-vs-Topping-a-Tree
I stand corrected on the fruit trees. I thought it was done to make the fruit easier to reach.
Here I see where people have cut all the tree’s branches off somewhere in the middle, leaving long or short stumps, from where numerous shoots emerge. To me, that’s topping. It seems identical to what I’ve seen called pollarding. There must be subtle differences that I don’t see, even after reading the article you linked. Thanks for that, by the way.