Trees: Big Red and Pagoda

The view from the back of my house includes a couple of much talked about trees. The large Copper Beech in St.Michaels park and the Ginkgo at the end of my neighbour Flora’s garden.

The trees are our signposts for the seasons and the change in colour across the year is quite amazing.

The copper beech known as 'Big Red' Stuart estimates is around 230 years old, it was originally named by our friends the Blackallers who's house also looked out towards St Michael's Park. If Flora, who is in her 90s, hears a chain saw in the park she has been known to shout loudly over the wall ‘What do you think you are you doing?’ and phone the council to make sure they are not chopping him down.

The Ginkgo, she tells me, she rescued from Jefferies Nursery bonfire. She worked there at the time and didn’t like unsold plants going to waste. The Nursery opened in The Avenue/Tower Street in 1979 - this area now has flats built on it. Flora planted the Ginkgo in the garden in Chester Street, when she moved here about 37 years ago. She refers to it as the ‘Pagoda Tree’ because of its distinctive shape.

In the recent hot summers the Ginkgo has produced lot of fruit, but be warned, do not touch them, they smell like horrible stinky cheese! (Thanks to Joff Elphick, I sniffed them.... yuck!)

When the leaves fell this year I noticed a carpet of colour and pattern - the fan shaped yellow of the Ginkgo with contrasting Copper Beech underneath.

The print is made up of three colours, the final layer is metallic to catch the light. I hope it captures a warm autumnal feeling. Here it is on my website - a small limited edition of 12 prints.