Epping Forest is fully embracing the Autumn Story this month!
To quote from local artist and writer, Jill Barklem’s charming book:
“It was a fine autumn. The blackberries were ripe, and the nuts were ready, and the mice of Brambly Hedge were very busy. Every morning they went out into the fields to gather seeds, berries and roots…”
If you haven’t read the full story, why not visit the Epping Forest Visitor Centre at Chingford to pick up a copy?
It’s one of the seasonal Brambly Hedge books, first published in 1980, and inspired by the trees and hedgerows of Epping Forest.
We were honoured to welcome Jill’s children, Lizzie and Peter Barklem, along with the chair of Visit England, Lady Victoria Borwick, Sir Iain Duncan Smith MP, and Epping Forest District Council chair, Louise Mead, to officially launch the Brambly Hedge Trail on October 10.
Families can now enjoy a Trail pack (£3), complete with a map, pencil, and character checklist. Once all 17 Brambly Hedge creatures are found, children can collect a special sticker at the Visitor Centre at Chingford.
The autumn story is unfolding across the Forest, with seasonal hues in the trees and hedgerows, and incredible fungi popping up on the woodland floor.
With some 1,600 species, fungi are a key part of our biodiversity. Please admire them, but do not pick – collecting fungi is against Forest byelaws.
Just like the Brambly Hedge mice heading out into the fields, our team also head out each morning to conserve and protect this precious place. We have over 100 dedicated staff and many committed volunteers, and I’m grateful to them all.
As green gives way to russets and golds, it’s worth noting that the French word for green, vert, is the root of the historic title Verderer.
In days gone by, Verderers were responsible for enforcing laws that protected Royal forests. Today, Epping Forest still has four elected Verderers who are members of the Epping Forest and Commons Committee, helping guide decisions about how the Forest is cared for and used.
Vert also refers to crab apples, and on October 12, our Engagement team enjoyed meeting visitors at the ever-popular Copped Hall Apple Day.
Ancient crab apple trees were once protected under Forest law as the ‘vert of the Forest’, being an important food for deer, and today they’re also a seasonal treat for our grazing English longhorn cows.
A final farewell to the vert of spring and summer then, and an eager hello to the “season of mists and mellow fruitfulness,” as Keats wrote in To Autumn (1819).
- Caroline Haines is chair City of London Corporation's Epping Forest and Commons Committee.
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