Power in the valley
The massive sweet chestnut tree seen below has to be my OneTree. Its girth measures at least 20 feet and the owner of the historically-landscaped wild area in which it grows tells me confidently that it is 300 years old. I've blipped it before in leafless winter and it can been seen here in full summer greenery. It's a giant of a tree, unwithered by age and powerful enough to offer accommodation to a variety of other species, including a couple of tiny yew tree sprouting from its crevices.
I took a number of pleasing photographs of the tree on an afternoon of unexpected sunshine and blue skies but in the end in was this one that caught my imagination. Recently the wooded slope here has been cleared to install new power lines. Although it seems a shame, new trees have been planted and the opening-up should benefit the chestnut which has been hitherto been shaded and hemmed in. I like the swoop of the lines as they dip down across the river and rise again to crest the valley on the far side. The giant tree is a closed system drawing its nourishment from the earth, the sun and the river right here while the electricity cables are part of a vast web fed from multiple sources but they co-exist side-by-side as harmonious neighbours.
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