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I supplied this article to  website called www.eco-friendlyweddings.co.uk and they modified it slightly and presented it on their web site. Which was nice of them, and I would recommend that you have a look at their site which is quite extensive and has lots of ideas, some of which you might find interesting.

The Oak Tree


The Oak Tree - added 17/11/07 - submitted by www.wedding-tree-favours.com


The Oak There are two similar species of Oaks in Britain, Quercus robur, The Sessile Oak and Quercus petraea, The Pedunculate Oak. They are quite similar, the former is found mainly in the South of England and its acorns are borne on cups with stalks that attach them to the branch whereas the latter is mainly in the North and west and its acorns are attached directly to the twigs.


However the two species hybridise and they can be difficult to tell apart.


This little chap is about 250 years old and has a very straight, neat edge to its lower branches. This is because it is in a field of cows and they keep it neatly clipped, as far as they can reach!


How long do they live?


The Bowthorpe Oak in Lincolnshire is estimated to be over 1000 years old.


How big do they grow?


It depends where they are planted, not so tall if they are on their own (60 feet). If they are in a forest and drawn up by surrounding trees then much taller (130feet)


What are they used for?


Less now than in days gone by but still a major use is in barrels to produce good whiskey, cognac, sherry and some wines such as Rioja.


It is still used for timber to produce high quality furniture and for beams and supports in house construction.


Also the bark is used in Tanning but not so much now as cheap substitutes have made it less economical. Back in the middle ages it was of major importance in Ship building. Also in days gone by all the acorns were collected up to feed pigs during the winter.


What lives on Oak trees?


You would need a book to go through everything. One estimate of animals that get their living mainly from eating the leaves or the timber or the bark is about 500. Then there are all the species that live on the bark such as the Lichens and Mosses or those that nest/rest/hibernate in the tree and then there are all the predators that rely on the herbivores who are eating the tree. Also don't forget all the fungi that live on the tree, some whilst it is alive and others that rot it away when it dies. So the answer is around 1000,


Are they good for the environment?


Well apart from providing a home for 1000 other species which when, species are becoming extinct at a greater rate now than ever before, they also store up quite a lot of carbon dioxide and produce lots of oxygen.


All green plants store up carbon dioxide when they photosynthesize but when it is dark they produce it as do all living things. Also when they die they release all the carbon dioxide they have stored due to natural decomposition. In the case of trees as they live for such a long time they will reduce the level of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere by a considerable amount and this effect will go on for hundreds of years ie for the length of their life plus however long it takes for them to rot away or be burnt. So on balance it is good to plant trees and a one hundred year old Oak tree will contain about 11 tonnes of carbon dioxide.
Depending on your life style you will produce about 7 tonnes of Carbon dioxide a year so if you plant 45 trees and they all grow that will offset your entire life's production of carbon dioxide. So when you get married if you give away 90 trees then you and your partner can rest easy for the rest of your lives as long as all the people you give them to plant them and they grow.



More info on trees as gifts can be found at www.wedding-tree-favours.com