Champion
conifers  |
Castlewellan is an area of outstanding natural beauty
located in the foothills of the Mountains of Mourne in Northern Ireland. Its
huge forest park covers 460 hectares and is a magnet for wildlife including Red
Squirrels, Pine Martens and Otters. | | Outstanding
natural beauty in Northern Ireland. |
One of Castlewellan's
most distinctive features is its mile long lake - keep your eyes peeled for birds
such as Little Grebes, Cormorants, Mallards and Mandarin Ducks.
This is
a great place to explore in winter which is a good time to visit its 'woodland
within a forest'. Hedges and trees  Castlewellan
is also home to the national Arboretum of Northern Ireland, a collection of trees
and plants started by the Victorians who obsessively scoured the globe for exotic
specimens.
The Arboretum boasts one of the greatest collections of trees
in Europe including stunning examples from Asia, the Americas and Australasia.
The great thing about coming to a place like Castlewellan in winter is
that while our native northern hemisphere trees are looking a bit threadbare,
those from the southern hemisphere are literally blooming. Although trees
have been brought to Castlewellan from around the world, they are already being
colonised by some native UK species such as lichens. For example, the Japanese
Maple is a popular host for native lichens, whilst beech trees from New Zealand
have been attacked by British Honey Fungus, which resembles stringy black boot
laces. Castlewellan is also home to the world's biggest continuous hedge
- the Peace Maze. Opened in 2001, it is made up of 6,000 Yew trees planted
by the people of Northern Ireland. The estate has another botanic claim
to fame - the gardeners here developed the Castlewellan Leylandii, the fast-growing,
controversial hedge which has led to many hedge wars across the UK. Giant
Redwoods  One
tree stands head and shoulders above the rest at Castlewellan - the Giant Sequoia
or Redwood from the United States of America which was added to the ornamental
gardens in the 1850s.
These are the world's largest trees in terms of volume,
growing to an average of 250 feet tall and 29 feet in width. Despite their
size, these trees have small pine cones, and are also characterised by bark resembling
shag pile carpet which is ideal for protecting the trees from fire. The
tree also provides an unlikely home for a British bird - the Treecreeper - which
has ingeniously spotted an opportunity to burrow into the Redwood's bark to make
its nest. Over time the bird makes several holes around the same tree trunk
so that it has a choice of sheltered roosts, whatever the direction of the wind
or rain. Look out for tell tale burrowing holes and streaks of white bird
droppings on the trees! Champion conifers  Another
great sight in winter is Castlewellan's champion conifers, of which there are
19 varieties, including the colourful Scots Pine.
Look out for a rare variety
of this tree called the Golden Scots Pine which changes colour in winter, turning
a beautiful burnished shade. When the spring comes, the tree reverts back
to the normal grey-green colour that we associate with the Scots Pine. Within
the woodland there are also great opportunities to hear Robins, one of the few
birds to sing in winter. This small bird becomes particularly territorial
in winter as it searches for scarce food resources. Credits Photographs
by kind permission of Forest Service Northern Ireland. | 
