Tree visits

As I will be away for a week, I did almost all my tree visits early. The two areas at the Reserve, on on the road above the lake, and the big beech at the ruined church. I just have the two on the run that takes me to the poplar copse.

There's not been a great deal to report, if I am honest. The ashes are stable, as are the horse chestnuts and the sycamore. Three compromised oaks are stable. There's a stable beech and so far two healthy oaks - one of whom sits in flood water for months.

I should get better at the conifers. There are some dead Scots pines... and I know the name of the disease if someone says it, but I can't remember on my own and I forget the symptoms.

The alive Scots pines were "popping". It was sunny and there is a noise like very gentle popcorn cooking sounds. Here's what ChatGPT told me about it:

Scots pine cones open and close in response to humidity. In warm, dry, sunny conditions, the scales dry out and flex open to release seeds; when it’s damp, they close again. That movement can produce faint crackling or popping sounds, especially if there are lots of cones warming up at once.

Spring is a prime time for this, as the air shifts between cool/damp and warm/dry. On a still, sunny day, a stand of pines can almost whisper or tick as the cones respond.

There are a couple of other possibilities too—just to round it out:

• Resin movement in the bark warming in the sun can sometimes make soft clicking sounds

• Wood expansion as branches heat up can produce occasional tiny cracks

But a scattered, gentle popping around the trees in sunshine? Cones opening is the most likely culprit.

It’s one of those small, almost hidden seasonal sounds—easy to miss unless you’re already listening.