Believe it or not, a month has passed since the last Tree Following post; this means another quick jaunt round to Rookery Park to take in the progress of our Avenue of Limes. To find out more about Tree Following, click on the image below.
Last Saturday (8th May) had been very wet and wild, but the following day brought sunshine and a spot of warmth. Rookery Park was marginally busier than my last visit, but still pretty quiet. A couple of dog walkers, and a chap doing his morning exercises in the playground was about the extent of it.
The Avenue
First things first, here’s my usual shot looking down the Avenue:
As I’m sure you can see, it’s a bit of a contrast to last time. The buds have burst and the canopies are starting to fill out. Here’s another photo looking backwards from about halfway down:
The leaves have a lovely fresh colour to them, amplified by all the rain from the previous day.
A Closer Look
Some of the buds haven’t quite got there yet…
…but the vast majority have:
Looking at them closely, you can see how it’s not just the leaves that emerge from the buds. There’s a new section of green stem and the early signs of the flowers, all exploding out of the bud in a matter of weeks.
The new sections of stem are often as much as a couple of inches long. If you enlarge the images above, you should be able to make out the red-tinted flower buds, ready to burst into action.
Leaves, stems and flowers are all pre-formed and contained within the dormant buds, formed last autumn. The new growth on show is really just a case of the tree pumping water into the buds to expand them. Impressive stuff! I took quite a few pictures of the new leaves, and couldn’t decide between them; I’ve put the whole lot up instead of choosing.
The Face
There is, of course, another face to be documented:
The rain had darkened the colour of the bark, making the faces much less distinct. If you squint slightly, it’s easier to make out. Angry, upswept eyes; flared nostrils; jagged mouth: it’s another disturbed individual. I’m beginning to question the mental stability of the artist.
Well that’s all for this month’s Tree Following. To take a look at some other Tree Following posts, head over to SquirrelBasket. Thanks for dropping by!
That green reaches into my very soul, can’t be out often enough at this time of year.
I completely agree!
Amazing difference, and it’s always good to new fresh green leaves.
I know, in just the space of a month!