A workshop on the identification of twigs in winter was offered to members for the first time this year. It was led by John Killingbeck of the Woodland Trust and assisted by Alan Hunton, a Veteran Tree Recorder. Muff very generously opened her house for the event so neither waterproofs nor hand warmers were needed on this occasion. John and Alan had brought a varied selection of the twigs from the most common deciduous broadleaved trees along with information sheets to help us identify each of their specimens. During the growth season trees produce buds ready for the next season’s growth, so these form some of the clues which we worked through for each twig, looking at bud shape, size, arrangement and colour, then the bark, thorns, catkins or any old leaves if they happened to be still attached. There were discussions on whether trees could be considered as native or introduced, and some tree varieties are known to hybridise, but over 18 distinct trees were identified. Some members had brought a few extras in to be identified and latterly John produced an interesting selection of conifer twigs to consider. Although on first appearance they looked quite similar, there were subtle differences of needle shape and arrangement and of course the cones, which allowed a very interesting discussion to ensue.
Sue Coldwell
