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January 2019 January 2019

upon ancient / veteran trees bounding
the hollow ways / sunken lanes leading
from the village on to Black Hill and
alongside the boundary hedge banks
skirting the southern edge to Black Hill.
These tracks / banks are of historic
interest and significance to Bere Regis
and the trees alongside them a part of
that history.
The group, ranging in age from primary
school children to pensioners, identified
a number of oaks. Apart from these
oaks being fine examples of trees, they provide a valuable habitat for a range of
wildlife species from invertebrates through to bats and birds. We also found some
massive ash stools (see photo below), these are trees that have repeatedly been
cut back for wood over the centuries and have re-sprouted from the base. Our
findings will be recorded on the national Ancient Trees Inventory. If you know of
any old trees you think are valuable let us know and we will take a look at them.

Our next recording session will be held on Saturday 19th January, meeting at the
Cemetery gates at 10am. Please come along, we need your help – no prior
knowledge of trees is required.

Butchers Broom
During our first survey of veteran
and ancient trees along
Cemetery Lane we found a
number of shrub plants of
Butcher’s Broom (Ruscus
aculeatus) within the hedgerow.
This is a most interesting and
rather unusual plant, now quite
rare. It grows up to about a
metre high in ancient woodland
and along old hedgerows. The
rather strange name is thought
to have come from branches of the spiny ‘leaves’ being used by butchers to
sweep down their meat cutting blocks. The roots have also been used as a
herbal medicine for treating blood circulation and other medical problems (but
don’t try this at home!). The plant is most unusual in having spiny ‘cladodes’ that
look like but are not leaves but are actually flattened stems with a sharp point.
The small flower and then subsequently the red berry fruit form in the centre of
the cladodes, see the photo below of these stages of flower development and

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