Why are there so many Ancient Trees in this London forest?

[@LeaveCurious]

Check out MPB bit.ly/MPBLeaveCurious to buy, sell or trade used camera kit in a simple, safe and circular way!

[@catshez]

I say yes to that dress on you 😘

[@gglen6574]

Left wondering if this was a coded message. 😊

[@OneL3gend]

Great to see another video on Epping Forest! Earlier this year I walked the entire length - Leyton to Epping - towards the north there are less and less paths, but what really surprised me positively were the wetlands towards the north, just endless pools of water intermixed with dense undergrowth that was after near impassable. They also formed an excellent barrier against the hundreds of deer in the forest, allowing for a really unique ecosystem

[@LeaveCurious]

Yeah it had been very dry but in the undulations of the forest you could see the softer ground. I’m yet to walk the whole forest, so much to explore!

[@animalsofherewood]

How long did it take you?

[@leogasparro4093]

Being from Waltham Forest, the London borough that has the most of Epping forest, these trees were the perfect spot to smoke weed and take other substances and I couldn't be more thankful

[@Enfrance2003]

I have lovely memories of visiting Epping Forest after the war. I had some Aunts who lived in the East End and Chingford and they knew that if me and my parents were going to visit a trip to the Forest was a must. Somehow it was different to my local woods in Pinner. Not just the size but also the type of flora and fauna. I played mostly in rhododendron trees because the soil was so acid so I was fascinated but the enormous trees in Epping. Great memories of the joy and relief after the war.

[@voiceinthenoise3357]

Thank you for speaking for nature. I wrote this poem about people scribbling on trees: ~ Immortality Why carve names on trees scars, not art, in bark where sap bleeds. Let us live forever, faceless, nameless, through the quiet, patient planting of seeds.

[@13Nagash13]

I remember when clean straight grain wood was the only wood desirable for flooring and furniture. Now I watch a lot of craftsmen who do wood turning or use slabs to make resin tables who specifically want the knotty, knobby, burl and crotch pieces for the grain abnormalities they create. Looking at those ancient pollard trunks they look like dream material for some woodworkers.

[@billymeyer99]

Such amazing woodland

[@TheWatchpoplars]

I live 5,000 miles to the west where the Redwoods grow. There are not many old trees where I live aside from the Valley Oaks and wild Plums, however seeing all the footage of these trees in the UK, I am getting SO MUCH bonsai inspiration!!! I have seen these same trees in my area, yet cultivated and brought over from different places, and they are a lot younger or they get weakened from our hot dry summers. I definitely needed this video to put some more pictures in my mind about other trees that I plan to start bonsai with. I am a youth, been doing bonsai for almost 3 years, owning 40 individual plants sharing or growing alone in their pots, and I don't see an end in my screaming passion of living a very green life.

[@Joss0051]

I have visited Epping Forest for many years, may it be looked after for many more...a lovely video, thanks, Joseph

[@sarahkendall5714]

If you want to see an ancient oak tree then I recommend visiting Panshanger Park in Hertfordshire, it has quite a few old tree but the oldest is huge and believed to have been planted by Queen Elizabeth I. It also has the beautiful chalk River Mimram flowing through the grounds.

[@memofromessex]

I live locally and go there 2-3 times a week. I love just getting lost in the woods, and there's places I go to and recognise. But at the same time I may pass the same place twice but because of the thicket the place seems so much bigger. There's also some surprisingly quiet places, some creepy places - with pagan offerings, weird carvings (and I even spotted someone walking in a far and distant corner in a gimp mask.)

[@Martinbeef]

Thanks for this. Even watching the film, it’s so relaxing to be in a forest and amazing to know that the trees go on, even when we disappear. To put a hand on an old tree, you can sense movement inside and growth. They keep going no matter what, and that’s inspiring. ❤

[@elliotreynolds7505]

Best content creator about wildlife and nature to date, you speak in such an enticing way with an abundance of knowledge ❤

[@elliotreynolds7505]

Great beard too 🧔‍♂️

[@LeaveCurious]

Thanks for the kind words mate! :)

[@LeaveCurious]

Oh hah it’s coming along…

[@E5PY]

Your comment is the push I needed to check out the rest of his channel. I hope it's a match in heaven

[@toma4794]

I grew and still live near by and it's been a massive part of my life

[@louislamonte334]

Fantastic Video, my friend! The beard looks GREAT on you! Thank you for your strength, resolve, consistency and courage! I hope to see these trees in person one day soon!

[@theostapel]

Thank you for the forest walk and the forest facts - from Munich.

[@Swaggerlot]

It was truly marvelous when post war government established the 'Green Belt'. It didn't go far enough, but it was huge win for the English countryside.

[@avancalledrupert5130]

But a huge loss for living conditions as we can't build enough houses for people to live. It should protect forrest but pasture land should be fair game. People need houses .

[@Swaggerlot]

@@avancalledrupert5130 The cause of that problem is no great secret and its not just in the UK. Successive governments allowing foreign property ownership and unbridled immigration.

[@videovoer8130]

@@Swaggerlot Immigration is just a small part of the housing crisis. The real problem is the cost of housing and not enough houses being built

[@thomas-i5o7h]

What a beautiful place !!

[@seant666]

My home, love it.

[@CyclingSteve]

I love Epping forest, you can get the Central line to the eastern half or the Overground to Chingford to reach the wider parts or cycle from Manor Park all the way up, there's also cycleway 23 from Hackney to Woodford where you can enter the forest. It gets a bit busy at the northern end at the weekends but empties out around 7pm when the car parks close which is great in summer. I've seen muntjac and roe deer, been scared by Jays and barking deer in the middle of the night, it's a real adventure getting lost sometimes.

[@christinecollins6389]

Interesting history and good informative video

[@AreHan1991]

Thanx! I would like to go there now

[@meadow9]

Thanks for the video. Question. Did you get the permission to film inside of Epping forest and flying the drone over it? I know that the conservators can be quite strict on that.

[@Hongaars1969]

Good afternoon. Wow, thank you. You appeared on my feed, I loved this video. Like subscribe, notifications on. And thanks for the mpd link, I am after a camera so its perfect timing. Cheers from Dubrovnik Zoltán

[@charlottescott7150]

Love the video thanks

[@lmonk9517]

epping forest also has cattles allowed to graze in the woods. so that is kinda like re-wilding.

[@oxfordgreg5556]

If you've never explored the Petworth estate in Sussex, I can recommend it. There are some wonderful, ancient trees there. Not as many as Epping, clearly, but wonderful, nonetheless.

[@philiptaylor7902]

Great video Rob, some amazing old trees there.

[@2gooddrifters]

I have a massive copper beech in my garden. The roots have their own ecoosystem. Newts live there ans some gaps between the roots contain little pools of water.

[@AjaySingh-228]

I never knew that Epping Forest was once a Royal Forest! It's amazing to think about how the forest has changed over the centuries.

[@bastronom4496]

Nice vid dude!

[@conormunro]

fantastic video!

[@DaveG-rs3xp]

great video. Thx

[@JanBanJoovi-ol1qv]

That’s F fing awesome mate!

[@Brenda-m8g]

I love your videos, please do More!

[@snowstrobe]

We must always resist Enclosure, we need to take back all of the commons. They should take that road out too. Actually appreciate hearing about this sponsor, which I think might be a first for me.

[@cherryXcanary]

Great video!

[@sarahstrong7174]

Very interesting video.

[@ArchimandritePhilip]

Coppicing and pollarding are what would have happened naturally when woolly mammoths pushed over/ broke trees. This created open rides which then produced a lot of understorey vegetation. We have no WM's so the alternatives are to a) let some elephants loose (unlikely!) b) get out the chainsaws and make elephant herd width rides randomly, (leaving the wood behind) in more or less straight lines in randomly chosen directions every now and again (several years apart). This over time produces some very old trees through to areas of no trees and everything in between.

[@thedogfather5445]

Sorry to tell you, but the mammoths were long gone by the time the trees arrived

[@RaduP66]

The true Britain we all (non British residents) used to admire! Some ppl will hate this video though!

[@RussTillling]

Could parts of the forest be rewilded with pigs, cattle & horses, and even beavers? It does like you say, have a very homogenous look. Magnificent trees, no understorey, and a few large shrubs. I’m guessing the parts you showed us would score a 6/10 on a biodiversity index? Great production as always though, with a dynamic, intimate feel which is very absorbing.

[@dianawhatley7369]

Boar, fox & deer? (And beavers, of course.) 😊

[@toma4794]

They do have English long horn cattle that roam Epping forest and there is a lot of fallow deer so much so that they cause a lot of issues from overgrazing and do need to be culled. But agree I think Beavers in the right location could have a big impact on Epping Forest's biodiversity.

[@researchcooperative]

Thanks… in places like this it would be nice if you can meet people involved in managing or using the forest, and let them speak to your camera and audience. Maybe that‘s already the plan!

[@chrismccartney8668]

My local forest walked my dogs in the forest. Many times..

[@asmallsectionoflife]

Cool video

[@levon3194]

Dear Magnanimous, Benevolence, Merciful, Cheerful, Unforgettable and Honourable Sir it was very kind of you to vouchsafe to give me opportunity to behold this brilliant video. Dear Magnanimous, Benevolence, Merciful, Cheerful, Unforgettable and Honourable David I gratitude your for this. Dear Magnanimous, Benevolence, Merciful, Cheerful, Unforgettable and Honourable David I desire that you Health shall be strengthen and your Soul shall facility in everlasting forever and ever!!!

[@derrickstableford8152]

Don’t forget the Salt Beef sandwich joint.

[@ewtube8004]

Im Interested in volunteering with rewinding or other preservation projects, do you recommend where I can look or who I can get involved?

[@flamencoprof]

09:40 I was just thinking "To preserve the nature (pun intended) of the forest shouldn't they resume the pollarding and coppicing?". As soon as this video began I could see most of the trees were pollarded, coppiced, not so much, even though, or perhaps because I am from NZ. In the Auckland suburb I grew up in, the streets were lined with coppiced beech trees which the Council still maintain 60 years later.

[@anemone104]

Good point. Corporation of London have done experiments with re-cutting pollards and starting new ones. Not just Epping, but Burnham Beeches and Ashtead Common. Unfortunately, restoration pollarding of lapsed pollards like these is problematic with the reaction to work very variable and an overriding imperative to try to retain each ancient tree. Expensive, too and requires courage in the face of public opinion.

[@glenncordova4027]

Coppicing and pollarding were done to harvest firewood and charcoal for heating and cooking. Technology has made that obsolete

[@anemone104]

@@glenncordova4027 Obsolete.... Debatable when you consider that by running your home heating on woodfuel you would be burning in-cycle carbon rather than burning sequestered carbon in the form of gas, oil or coal.

[@flamencoprof]

@@anemone104 I can see how it would be hard to do with these old trees. and it didn't look like there are a lot of younger trees more amenable.

[@flamencoprof]

@@glenncordova4027 I agree, but this is more of a museum forest than a working forest. It is already uneconomic, isn't it?

[@Jibberellin]

Be sure and don't forget the Thumb. Nail.

[@Modernnannenginemarineengine]

Even prehistoric peoples knew how to get the most from forests they Pollarded the trees at certain heights and in certain ways to get most Wood. The Biggest tree felling was during the Napoleonic French English wars. We chopped down millions when we couldn’t import European oaks. Ash. Yew etc.

[@danielcargill8019]

Watching from Massachusetts, does London plant new trees on city roads?

[@ssgg23]

So would this have been a rainforest naturally as well? Or does it get less rainfall than those areas?

[@TheTree5500]

What is the difference between coppicing a tree and felling it? (How do you ensure it regrows after being cut?)

[@TottWriter]

A lot of it comes down to the species. Some are far more resilient to being felled, and will regrow new shoots/trunks if the main one is lost. For example, a row of sycamores near me was felled due to an imminent construction project, which was subsequently delayed. They've all begun to regrow, with huge clusters of shoots around their bases. Beech, Cobnut, and several others are also very happy to send out new growth after being cut down, and these make excellent species for coppice plantations - there are actually quite a few of these near where I live in Kent, although as they're commercial lumber, they're not allowed to grow anywhere near as large as the specimens in Epping!

[@TheTree5500]

@@TottWriter Thank you. I prefer pollarding because I'd consider it to be safer than coppicing since you don't cut it down to ground level.

[@anemone104]

@@TheTree5500 Depends how you define 'safe'. Pollarding is harder to do and more risky for the people doing the work than coppicing. Remains true today (especially if working on lapsed pollards like those shown in the film) with cherry pickers, climbing gear, winches and chainsaws. Now consider that hand saws did not become commonplace until the run-up to the Industrial Revolution. Romans had them, but they were rare, expensive to make and tended to be used for prestige woodworking. So most work out in the woods in the middle ages was done with edged tools like axes and billhooks. You are re-cutting a pollard in, say 1600. The stems would have been much smaller than those in the film, but even so, you would have been up on the top of the bolling (trunk top) cutting the stems with an axe, 10 feet in the air. No harness, no rope. Pollards were known as 'widowmakers'. Coppicing was (and is) much easier and much safer to do. In absence of grazing pressure (including deer), it works as well or better than pollarding in terms of the response the tree makes to being cut (it re-grows). But if you have livestock (or deer or both) then you can't successfully do coppice as the regrowth at ground level gets eaten off. You don't get the nice, usable, straight regrowth you are aiming for, but a branchy mess. In extreme cases, constant grazing will kill the coppice stool - one way you can clear woodland is to deploy grazing animals. So if you cannot exclude the grazing animals (the king's deer, remember) you pollard. It has to be 10' up as cattle will reach up, snag a drooping branch tip and eat back along it, breaking the branch. Put it another way, pollarding was done where there was a pressing need for wood products (timber, tanbark, wood fuel, charcoal, white coal 'tree hay') at the same time as heavy grazing. Some of the pollards seen here are actually stob-cuts or coppards. Others are coppice stools whose stems have been stob-cut or even pollarded at a later date. That's long, but I hope it was useful.

[@TheTree5500]

@@anemone104 Yes, thank you for the reply. When I say "Safer" I mean safer for the tree.

[@kdsketch]

Any plans on buying some land and regenerating that?

[@LeaveCurious]

Thats the ultimate goal, but land is expensive here in the UK. Further down the line for sure

[@Herman-bz2iw]

Hey, I finally got into university in Scotland! I’m wondering if you know how to get involved in rewilding in Scotland? Really appreciate your videos!

[@LeaveCurious]

Hello! i guess it depends how?

[@LeaveCurious]

and congrats on uni!

[@doofernz]

1:50 🥴 hahaha

[@raphlvlogs271]

not all trees can be coppiced or pollarded heavily it depends on if they are a pioneer species or a apex species of tree

[@damonchampion823]

💚

[@eewilson9835]

that guy is like the character played by sissy spacek and made that leaf go telekenesis.

[@ginojaco]

A 450 year old beech tree?! That truly would be ancient for the speices... can anyone give examples of standard beech trees that old?

[@oskarprotzer3000]

for clarification, only Lords were allowed to hunt anyway

[@Greenmahn333]

👍

[@arcan762]

8:45 gyatt

[@Shaden0040]

I don't know what the legality is of collecting seeds from these trees but if they could be collected professionally and with limitations so that the seeds can be planted and used to make new ceilings and young trees of these ancient denizens and started growing your forests In the US we have pines we have hemlocks we have oaks we have maples we have birches we have beaches we have elder we have willows we have aspens we have sugar maples the number of tree species we have in the United States is amazing and I'm just talking about local here in Massachusetts Now if every person could walk through a forest and take three seeds or acorn opine nuts and plant them in areas where there are no forests right now and protect those seedlings from deer would be a great thing even here in the US that would be a great thing. I'm in the siege can be regulated to what specific areas they are native to Based on location and elevation and moisture content to the soil acidity nutrient levels that'd be really good for those seedlings to get planted in the appropriate places where there will be good for the environment and rewild all of England I mean at this point in England could afford to take off half their agricultural land and change back into forests And not just for us but the understory canopy growth all of that is important which will add a habitat for native species my only concern would be removal of downed wood not all of it just most of it so that there is no fire hazard I don't know how controlled burns would work in the uk I don't know if they've ever been done there before unlike the US where it seems to be a common practice of burning the understory and getting rid of the excess dried wood on the 4th floor mean I know that a lot of that forest would is good for habitat renewal soil amendment but if you ever had a bad year of drought that's just going to go up like a tinderbox she just has to watch what you're doing and the more trees you have with Beavers to build small dams the more your aquifer is going to benefit and stay damp.

[@jammiedodger7040]

It’s because they didn’t make things to last anymore and not making everything domestic is a big reason for that.

[@altvamp]

Because they haven't been chopped down yet?

[@aethelwulf7819]

That forest needs a few pagan idols in honour of the old forest gods, e..g The Green Man and even Herne the Hunter.

[@Matt-es1wn]

My guy with the barefoot boots. How nice is it walking in a forest with barefoots. I was walking bare feet on a wet peaty moor the other day, it was still warm from the earlier sun and it was the nicest surface i could possibly imagine walking on. Orgasm for the feet haha

[@LeaveCurious]

Yup it’s unparalleled. Never going back to regular shoes! Peatbogs must feel amazing!

[@DavidCruickshank]

Barefoot is best. "Orgasm for the feet" is such a great way of putting it.

[@jennieswensson463]

Yeah that is the main problem of making green spaces open to the public...the public. 🤦‍♀🤦‍♀

[@cubicajupiter]

Elwynn Forest

[@johnfowler4820]

If London could buy a forest from the royalty and give it back to the common folk in the eighteen hundreds why can't city and county councils take back our land for us now?

[@hobi1kenobi112]

Because most of them are Labour councils famous for their obsessions with building ugly boxes on every blade of grass.

[@KingFinnch]

london is basically the only place that could do that as it's got an entirely different legal system to the rest of the uk

[@verilliumfunk4886]

Capitalism

[@wineandwaistcoats]

Also, a significant number of them are on the verge of bankruptcy

[@TS-jm7jm]

​@@verilliumfunk4886the uk is a fascist state, as in companies in league with the government how do you not know this

[@gowithbazza]

Yer come have a look at Stanmer Park Woods where Brighton Hove city council are currently according to them they are carrying out safety work ie cutting down dead ash and other dying and disease trees but they're also taking more healthy trees then I are dying and diseased trees are you killing what used to be a beautiful Forest

[@GoingtoHecq]

WHO ARE YOU CALLING A BEECH!?

[@denislaminaccia1]

What's the deal with the "thumb nail"? 😃

[@LeaveCurious]

reminds me to constantly think about it when i'm out! too easy to miss opportunities to capture a good one!

[@djscoah8037]

Let me guess The trees are only there because black people planted them? It’s only a matter of time 😄😵‍💫

[@pieterjan29]

Brits... they always like old things.

[@theostapel]

That is because one - touches one's roots - strong - if needed. Fare thee well - on life's journey

[@alun7006]

New things too.

[@theostapel]

@@alun7006 There you go - of course. And those in between - who are trying to escape - into other dimensions. It is a permanent dance - on that Isle. Fare thee well - on life's journey.

[@jontalbot1]

It’s true in respect of many things including trees. Trees are allowed to assume their natural shape in Britain and old trees will have their branches propped up. There are many old yew trees in churchyard. They were there before the church and were planted by pre- Christian pagans for whom they were a symbol of eternal life. There are lots over 1000 years old

[@theostapel]

@@jontalbot1 Good - they were used for countless bows and go so slowly. It is your elms that are nearly gone - due to the Dutch elm disease - (correct me if I am wrong). Yews are a special friend. I have one beautiful tree - growing - at me house. Would like to take it - with me - if I go away. Fare the well - on life's journey.

[@az55544]

don't climb on ancient trees, mate!

[@LeaveCurious]

Honestly depends on the tree. I used to inspect trees for a living & understanding their body language is key to doing it safely for you & the tree.

[@az55544]

@@LeaveCurious so, with your logic, everyone should climb on *that* tree? everyone who deems it safe for them self? that could be a lot of people. the point is - you aren't special.

[@5UM0N3]

​@@az55544 what's your problem? humans are as much a part of nature as trees, chill out

[@maxchalnick7067]

@@az55544 has everyone inspected trees for a living?

[@meadow9]

@az55544 is right. Climbing ancient trees in Epping forest is clearly forbidden if one cares to read the signs. @LeaveCurious The Conservators would have reminded you that if you had contacted them. Also, this one was a sponsored video and needed requesting the filming licence from Epping Forest charity, did you do that? See: www.cityoflondon.gov.uk/things-to-do/green-spaces/epping-forest/apply-for-a-licence-in-epping-forest/filming-and-photography-in-epping-forest

[@beaulieuc8910]

too much spammy advertising

[@TARAetJOHN]

YOU SPEAK TOO MUCH , show the stuff not your face

[@ConstantChaos1]

Terrible take, this is an educational and advocating channel, not a documentary channel. You don't go to a tailor and complain they won't sell you meat, don't come to a channel that is not and has never been a straight documentary channel and request they re-write the entire channel to accommodate you and only you. You are not the main character, stop acting like you are.

[@LeaveCurious]

Does my face offend you that much 😂

[@jontalbot1]

@@LeaveCurious Hmm…yes but carry on

[@dianawhatley7369]

I greatly appreciate the offering of information. Yes, of course there are times when a simple, quiet walk in to woods is lovely, but to understand the woods makes the walk all the better. One must take time to learn and thanks to this channel I may learn about places far beyond my reach. And I certainly have no problem with seeing such an enthusiastic teacher!

[@johnbarham9991]

Purple and silver would be a fabulous colorway for you. 💜🤍💜🤍

[@bc4198]

🫱"Aliens"🫲

[@anemone104]

Where?? Will there be probes?!

[@elizag9479]

❤