Autumn is here, whether you follow the definition of meteorological autumn, which starts on the first of September or the astronomical autumn which starts at the autumn equinox.  The equinox is when day and night length are equal, after that time the days get shorter. Or it might be that you are noting the signs of the seasons changing.  The BBC, the Woodland Trust and Nature’s Calendar chart the advance of autumn by recording events in the life of key species, for example blackberry, hawthorn, swifts, conkers, ivy and oak.  The information collected helps build a picture of how climate change is affecting the time of flowering, fruiting  etc. of many species. The blog has already commented on the early flowering of the blackberries but now woodlands are starting to transform into a mosaic of reds, yellows, and oranges as the leaves prepare to be shed and the woodland floor becomes a fungal jungle, (as Jasper has described). Hawthorn, Blackthorn and other bushes are laden with berries, conkers and acorns will be strewn across woodland floors. Squirrels eat hazelnuts (and hide some of them as a winter food store).  This banquet of fruits and seeds may be a response to the long, hot and very dry summer we have just experienced.  Trees and shrubs have been stressed by the heat and drought. Some have responded by mobilising their reserves / efforts into producing more fruits and seeds, to ensure that they pass on their genes to the next generation.   [caption id="attachment_24651" align="aligncenter" width="600"] Sloes on Blackthorn[/caption] If it seems like you have been noticing more acorns on the trees than normal that could be down to a "mast year”. Mast years occur roughly every five to ten years and refer to years when certain species of trees Like oak & beech) and shrubs produce a larger than normal crop of berries, nuts and fruit.  This boost in production means far more is produced than can be eaten  by the usual herbivores, squirrels, dormice etc, thus ensuring at least some of the mast goes on to grow new plants.  However, this ‘over-production’ can come at a cost to the tree, using vital resources so that growth in the subsequent year may be reduced.  Quite what causes trees and shrubs to ‘go mad’ and overproduce is not known but some theories are explored in a previous blog, though the weather in Spring is an important factor. [caption id="attachment_42689" align="aligncenter" width="675"] Collecting acorns.[/caption]

This year's Spring saw a number of fires damaging important UK wildlife habitats.  In Northern Ireland, wildfires have often spread through gorse, which is widespread, often dry and flammable.  One such fire occurred at Slieve Beagh.  The area is mainly blanket bog, with small lakes and streams.  The fire here raged for three days and has destroyed a large area of blanket bog.  It was described as a ‘hot burn’, in that it advanced slowly and burned deep into the blanket bog. Hotter and drier Springs have contributed to greater amounts of dry material,  The bog is the habitat of the hen harrier - an endangered species, as well as being important site for migrating and over-wintering birds. [caption id="attachment_42436" align="aligncenter" width="675"] Moorland[/caption] There will now been a concerted effort to restore the area, which was designated a RAMSAR (wetland) SITE in 1999 and is an area of special scientific interest.  Whilst the burnt area is now green again, the new vegetation lacks the variety of original plant species.  Much is grass, which could contribute to another fire; it will take many years for species like sphagnum moss, bog myrtle and bilberry to return. Sphagnum moss creates a habitat that helps in formation of. Peat.  Peat forms in wetland conditions, when water accumulates and oxygen is limited slowing the rate of decomposition.  If the bog flora can be re-established, then insects will return and, in turn, the birds.  An absence of predators, coupled with suitable weather would see successful broods of chicks raised, and a functional ecosystem restored. The RBCT (River Blackwater Catchment Trust) is working with various agencies to create a fire plan. Burns apart from destroying the habitat, release vast quantities of carbon dioxide from the stored carbon in the peat.   The plan is to include  the introduction of grazing, which should help control the amount of accumulation of flammable vegetation, and  make use of technology such as drones to find and fight fires.   Drones might also spot people, who are frequently responsible for such fires.  

Blackberries are one of the best-known fruits in the rose family. They’re often collected in the wild from hedgerows and woodlands.  September and October are usually the peak months for blackberry forays, but this year blackberries [with the exceptional warmth of the Spring and summer months], they have been ripening early.  Some ripe fruits were spotted back in June!  The fruits start off green, but as they mature they become red and finally black from stem to tip. The bramble has a perennial root system with biennial stems. In the first year, the stems (sometimes called canes) grow vegetatively, but in their second year they produce flowers and fruit.   Then they die back but the dried stems together with their prickles / thorns can persists for some time.  It is a good idea to wear some protective gloves when rummaging for these fruits. The leaves of the bramble are compound, with 3 - 5 - 7 leaflets which have serrated edges.  Its flowers are white to a subtle shade of pink.  They have 5 petals and first appear in early Spring.  They are attractive to pollinators such as bumblebees. Blackberries are a nutritious fruit, rich in Vitamin C but also contain other nutrients, e.g. Vitamin K and manganese.  A cup full of blackberries can provide 7 grammes of dietary fibre.   The colourings of the fruits (anthocyanins and flavonoids) are a source of antioxidants. Blackberries are a food source for wildlife food, many birds, foxes, and many small mammals (for example the dormouse) feed on the berries.  However, this earlier appearance of autumnal fruits may cause problems.  For example, some birds feed upon insects in the Spring and summer months but by autumn they move over to seeds and fruits, like blackberries. But what if the fruits have come and gone, and there are just the shrivelled remains of once juicy fruits.  There could be a 'food gap', this would be especially series for animals trying to prepare for the relatively barren days of winter.  Deer may feed on bramble leaves. If large amounts of bramble are allowed to grow in a woodland, it can affect the microclimate of the ground  layers.  This influences the growth and development of other plants. Whilst brambles can offer protection from browsing by deer and / or rabbits of young tree saplings, they can also suppress the development of light loving species.  A thicket of brambles can also offer a home to some birds, like the nightingale. Further reading - see here

To many people, the dandelion is a pernicious weed.   First one makes its way into your garden, but then due to its reproductive capacity - there are dozens.  Each flower stalk may produce up to 200 seeds with their characteristic parachute for dispersal.  A plant may produce 10 or so flower stalks, so that it is a lot of seeds from a single plant.  Once the seeds  disperse and germinate, they produce a significant tap root which grows down into the soil seeking water and minerals.  The seedlings can survive in inhospitable places, like the cracks between street paving stones or on your drive. As the seeds are wind blown, they may travel considerable distances with the aid of their ‘parachutes'.  However, changes in agriculture, increasing use of herbicides etc have meant that countryside populations of dandelions have diminished.  This has affected the insects that feed upon the dandelions' nectar and pollen.  As the number of these insects falls, it affects the seed production of other plants that these insects visit. Interestingly, urban dandelions seem to benefit from the heat island effect in cities.  A city may be some 2oC warmer than its surrounding countryside, more so in the summer.   Dandelions seem to thrive in the heat, growing more rapidly than their 'rural cousins'.  Urban warmth also means that the plants can begin to flower soon after a milder and shorter winter, whereas other plants struggle to adapt to changing environmental signals.   The urban  dandelions provide a 'feast' for insects in early Spring when resources are limited.  Urban meadows can provide 90% of the nectar for pollinators, and 80% of the pollen. These provide sugars and proteins / amino acids for some 200 species of pollinators [ solitary bees, mining bees, bumble bees, hover flies and pollen beetles].  The gifts of the dandelions are helping many struggling insect populations. Interesting fact : Dandelions often reproduce by a sort of sub-sexual system (termed apomixis) that has resulted in some 200+ microspecies in the U.K.  These have been studied by Professor John Richards for some 40 years.  The species name Taraxacum officinale has a gg. (for aggregate) added to it - in recognition of all the variations of the plant that can be found.  Thanks to Angus for images. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Taraxacum officinale  

A recent court case centred around the use of the death cap mushroom to poison people at a dinner party.  The use of this fungus to kill people is not as unusual as you might expect. It may have been involved in the death of the Roman emperor Claudius, and that of Pope Clement VII in 1534.  The death cap was also implicated in the death of the composer Johann Schobert.  Having collected wild mushrooms in Pré-Saint-Gervais, he was told that they were not edible, indeed poisonous.  Nevertheless, he used them to make mushroom soup. He and his wife, and one of his children died after consuming the soup. [caption id="attachment_33585" align="aligncenter" width="650"] A young Death Cap showing the somewhat hairy stem[/caption] The death cap looks inoffensive, with a pale yellow cap and white gills and can be mistaken for edible species if fungi.  It thought to be responsible for the vast  majority of fungal related deaths.  The active compound is a toxin called alpha-amanitin.  It is absorbed through the small intestine and as it circulates in the blood stream, it passes to the liver and then to the gall bladder. The toxin then enters the intestine again when the bile is released when the person next eats.  This cycle may repeat several times, with the toxin inflicting more and more damage. [caption id="attachment_33580" align="aligncenter" width="650"] Death Cap (Amanita phalloides)[/caption] Why the death cap makes this toxin is not clear.  It may deter insects and other invertebrates from eating the mushroom, or may help it establish mycorrhizal relationships by ‘interfering' with rival fungi.  Interestingly, the death cap was once assumed to be native to Europe, but it is now to be found America and other parts of the world.  It is thought to have travelled on the mycorrhizae of imported trees For further details of the toxin(s) produced by the death cap, and its reproduction - see the New Scientist 6th September 2025. Photos by Jasper, see his blogs on fungi month by month.  

This morning,  the Today programme (Radio 4) featured an interview with Kevin Martin ( Head of Tree Collections at Kew) and Chris Packham (environmental compaigner).  They were explaining the ongoing effects of this summer’s hot and dry weather.  Mr Martin said that the trees at Kew were “ tired, they have had a stressful summer”.  The result is that many trees are entering their dormant stage, moving materials from aerial regions to the roots - much earlier than usual.  The colour changes in leaves and leaf drop do not usually occur until well into October but this year such changes are already  proceeding apace.  Kew has been able to put some mitigations in place, for example, the watering of young trees which have yet to establish extensive roots systems. This is not true for trees across the UK, where young saplings in particular may have been affected by the dry weather and successive heat waves, [plus increased browsing by the extensive deer population]. Chris Packham spoke of “climate breakdown” and “environmental chaos”, noting that an oak tree near him was ‘festooned with acorns’, but they were only the size of peas.  Normally acorns would fall later in the year as food for wood pigeons,jays, squirrels and badgers.  Jays help ‘plant’ oak trees by distributing acorns.  He said that whilst local hawthorns were red with berries, which would normally be food for winter thrushes later in the year, the berries would now be dried up / shrivelled when the birds arrived to search for them.  Though lots of hedgerow fruit [e.g. sloes, rose hips, blackberries] is being produced, it is being produced at the wrong time.  He also commented on the scarcity of mole hills as moles are forced to burrow deeper in the soil in search of earthworms etc. As the seasons change, some plants and animals adapt. For example,  blackcaps from Northern Germany fly to the UK rather than Spain to overwinter.  During a relatively short period, their wing length has changed, actually shortened - a case of evolution in action.  However, many species are struggling.   The  wet summer of 2024 was particularly difficult for butterflies, as evidenced by the data collected by the Big Butterfly Count. Nature's timings are now ‘out of sync’, plants and animals are further impacted by extreme weather events, flooding, high winds and extreme temperatures. [caption id="attachment_24651" align="aligncenter" width="600"] Sloes on Blackthorn.[/caption] https://www.metoffice.gov.uk/about-us/news-and-media/media-centre/weather-and-climate-news/2025/double-record-breaker-spring-2025-is-warmest-and-sunniest-on-uk-record  

The base of a tree trunk is often covered with a ‘carpet’ of moss and lichens and the branches of the tree may bear ‘decorations’ of different mosses.  In shady areas, there may be a soft, spongey layer of moss underneath the tree.  Mosses are ‘simple’, non-vascular plants. They lack the sophisticated transporting tissues (phloem and xylem).  Nor do they have true roots, instead they have small structures called rhizoids, which help them attach to a surface. They ‘like’ moist places and are dependent on water for their reproduction.   The ancestors of mosses were probably some of the first plants to colonise land (previously there were only algae in the seas), possibly in the Ordovician Period. Mosses rarely grow to any great height, due to the absence of supporting mechanical tissue (lignified tissues, like xylem) but they can form extensive ‘mats’ in damp, shady places (as can liverworts).  Exposed to direct sunlight, they lose water rapidly.  Such mossy mats can, in some situations, help reduce soil erosion. The mats may also allow for the accumulation of humus and soil formation.  A particular example of the accumulation of mossy material is seen with the moss Sphagnum. Sphagnum grows in acidic, marshy conditions, often forming a bog. Low fertility and a cool climate result in slow growth of the Sphagnum (and other plants). The subsequent decay of dead plant material is even slower (due low oxygen levels). Hence, peat forms and accumulates.  Large areas of land can be covered to a depth of several metres with peat.  Bogs are a very effective means of locking up carbon for hundreds, if not thousands of years.   Sadly, many wetlands have been drained and allowed to dry out, then the peat cut from them as a form of fuel.  When peat areas are drained (channels are cut through the peat), they degrade and dry out. They are then at risk of  catching fire as has been seem in recent times:for example, the burning of  Slieve Beagh in Ireland and Langdale Moor in Yorkshire. The Interesting fact : Sphagnum has an interesting property in that can hold water  many times its own weight.  Because of this absorbency, Sphagnum was used as a wound dressing in WW1. https://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/images/150780/irelands-cutaway-peatlands https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cvg9n0j07epo .

Not all trees thrive in wet ground, but some species have adapted remarkably well to life with their roots submerged or in saturated soil. Among the best known are alder (Alnus), willow (Salix), and bald cypress (Taxodium distichum). Each plays a key role in stabilizing waterways, reproducing in wet conditions, and providing ecological benefits that extend to both humans and wildlife. Bank Stabilization Waterways are naturally dynamic systems, with banks that can shift and erode over time. Trees such as alder and willow are crucial in holding these banks together. Alders develop dense root systems that grip soil tightly, reducing erosion along rivers and streams. Similarly, willows have long, fibrous roots that spread widely and bind soil particles, acting almost like a living net. Bald cypress trees are less common along fast-moving rivers but dominate in swamps and floodplains. Their root systems, which include distinctive “knees” that protrude above water, help anchor them in soft, shifting sediments. In each case, the presence of these trees prevents soil loss and maintains more stable aquatic habitats. [embed]https://youtube.com/shorts/Tx6ra0WbrQ4?feature=share[/embed] Reproduction Through Water These species have also adapted to use water as a mechanism for reproduction. Willows are particularly effective at vegetative reproduction: broken branches can float downstream, take root in wet ground, and grow into new trees. Alders disperse lightweight seeds that are carried by water, enabling them to colonize new wet areas quickly. Bald cypress trees produce woody cones that release seeds into standing water, where they can establish when conditions are right. These strategies ensure that populations remain resilient in environments that frequently flood or shift. [embed]https://youtube.com/shorts/Hxf88-V27EY?si=JCGZWVBu7D7G1U0i[/embed] Benefits of Water-Resistant Trees Water-tolerant trees provide numerous benefits to ecosystems and people. By stabilizing soil, they reduce sediment entering rivers, which improves water quality. They also mitigate flood impacts: dense stands of willow or cypress can slow water flow, reducing the severity of downstream flooding. Their shade lowers water temperature, which benefits aquatic species such as trout and amphibians. In addition, these trees contribute to biodiversity by offering habitat and food for insects, birds, and mammals. [embed]https://youtube.com/shorts/KtqFq1FdOjA?feature=share[/embed] For human communities, the presence of water-resistant trees translates into natural flood control, cleaner waterways, and protection of infrastructure built near rivers and wetlands. In a time of increasing climate variability, species that withstand flooding are especially valuable as buffers against extreme weather events. Conclusion Alder, willow, and bald cypress are excellent examples of trees that thrive with their “toes in the water.” They stabilize banks, reproduce effectively in wet habitats, and deliver ecological services that benefit both nature and people. Preserving and planting these species where appropriate is an important step in maintaining resilient waterways and healthy ecosystems.