Ancient trees and the Spanish Armada

One of the loveliest things about visiting Croft Castle in Herefordshire is to see the many ancient trees planted there. Majestic chestnuts and oaks some going back hundreds of years.

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A story tells that sweet chestnuts were taken from captured Spanish ships and planted at Croft between 1580 and 1680. The avenue is said to represent the formal battle plan of the Spanish Armada with rows of chestnuts representing the Spanish ships and oaks the English. This was the original formal approach to the castle.

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The Spanish chestnut Avenue at Croft Castle, Herefordshire is an avenue of pollarded sweet chestnuts (Castanea sativa) stretching for 1km to the west of the castle.

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An avenue of Limes are also impressive, though these are much younger and there is also an orchard of Hawthorns, thought to be root stock of fruit trees that have since died.

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If you want to see these majestic trees then follow the green trail.

If you enjoy a walk, long or short, then have a look at Jo’s site where you are welcome to join in.

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Heyjude

I have lived in the UK for most of my life, but when young I definitely had wanderlust and even ended up living in South Africa for several years which was a wonderful experience. I now look forward to a long and leisurely retirement doing what I like most - gardening, photography, walking and travelling.

36 thoughts on “Ancient trees and the Spanish Armada”

  1. EEk, Jude! Your title’s all squiffy! Fix it quick 🙂 🙂 But I love the trees and thank you for a beautiful saunter.

    1. Really? It looks fine to me. What are you viewing it on? I thought you might like the trees, they are even older than we are 😉

        1. Armada – R in the wrong place. Doh! Thank you for spotting it, took me a while to work it out…

  2. I love those straight avenues of trees. Reminded me of similar places in France.
    You are getting some good November colours too, Jude. Unfortunately, it’s been too wet here for me to take the camera out.
    Regards as always, Pete. x

    1. I managed to get these before the fog and rain, hope to get out again soon, this afternoon was lovely, but I had other mundane things to do 😦

  5. Lovely gallery, Jude. It looks like a beautiful place to be.
    It’s quite stormy and occasionally also wet in Cley today.
    Best regards,
    Dina & co

    1. It is a lovely place Dina. Always very peaceful and I love the trees and the views over the countryside. Hope you stayed warm and safe today, better keep those Bookfayries indoors, we don’t want them blown away 😉

  8. They are lovely photos, and I do love trees … but quite frankly Jude, I don’t know one tree from another.
    Having said that, a tree that is several hundred years old is mighty impressive.

    1. I love these deciduous trees and walking amongst them. I’m not so keen on the fir tree forests where it is usually too dark and silent and somewhat eerie.

      1. I agree with you. I’m not so fond of fir trees either, but it’s purely for superficial reasons. They simply lack the prettiness and seasonal drama of the deciduous.
        I guess I’m a tree snob 😉

  10. I’ve seen lots of sweet chestnuts on the ground this year, but none of them swollen and ripe just little, pale efforts. It’s a strange year. Your lime walk is gorgeous but nothing beats the English Oak to my mind, grand old beauties x:-)x

    1. Perhaps we didn’t have enough heat in the summer to ripen them. Though apples seem to have done very well!

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