January 18th, 1999

Oak twig, with galls.The expected snow and wind arrived at Ackworth last week, with a covering of snow on the morning of the 11th and some brief periods of high wind and heavy rain later in the week, preceded by dramatic falls in atmospheric pressure.Beech twig , with pointed, alternating buds.

This morning, I saw a greater spotted woodpecker in an oak tree and watched it as it started drumming. This is the first drumming that I have heard this year. The sound should become increasingly common in the coming weeks. Nearby, a green woodpecker was calling, with its familiar 'yaffle', from a large ash tree, in which green woodpeckers have nested successfully in the past. The green woodpecker did what Ash twig, with distinctive black buds.these birds often do and remained on the far side of the tree trunk, peeping around the side of the trunk occasionally.

Now is a good time for learning to identify trees when they are without their leaves. A walk around your own 'patch' allows you to take a close look at trees which you already know the identity of. Features such as size, shape, growth habit and type of bark are all useful when identifying trees in winter but, on this page, I have concentrated on the twigs. There are also some twigs on earlier pages.

Watch for clusters of brown, scaly buds on oak trees (December 28th) and you may see various types of galls, such as the ones shown above. Some buds make quite a contrast with their supporting twigs, such as the black buds on greyish green ash twigs and the green buds on the darkerAlder twig, with male flowers (to be catkins) and female flower (upright). twigs of sycamore. The horse chestnut buds (December 28th) win the prize for sheer size and their sticky coating gives them a colourful sheen. The branches of horse chestnuts hang downwards but curl upwards towards the tips, Sycamore, with green bud and dark twig.making the trees easy to recognise, even from a distance. Some trees are showing more signs of life than the others and one of these is the grey alder. This is not a native tree but there are a number planted in the grounds. The male flowers, which will become catkins, are easy to see but a closer inspection will also reveal the developing female flowers, which grow upright and will develop into cones later in the year. The female flowers on alder species and willows are worth a closer as the bright red stigma develop. Other distinctive buds to be seen are those on beech. These are thin and pointed and alternate on the twigs. The individual buds are attractive if viewed through a lens.