Walking in woods.

Yesterday we went to investigate the progress of the bluebells along the forest path. At one point we both said together, “ It’s beginning to get that blue mist effect!” Which it was: that visual effect when enough flowers have opened up for it to look as though there’s a low-lying mist. Here are a few photos. 

According to this article, we are doing the right thing by going out walking on a regular basis. I have always known this but now someone called Annabel Streets has written a book about it. But apparently it’s not just walking any old where, it’s specifically walking under trees that is really good for us.

““Every day I stand under an evergreen tree now,” she says. “I have become obsessed with terpenes.”

Terpenes are a type of organic compound produced by plants, part of a protection system against insects, disease and rot. They are the reason pine trees smell piney and citrus trees smell citrussy. They are also one of the reasons humans are drawn to trees. The presence of these tiny molecules has an anti-inflammatory effect on the body. Laboratory research has shown that the terpene a-pinene, found in conifers such as our yew tree, could have properties that prevent cancer. Studies on the citrus compound D-limonene suggest it is an effective mood-booster and antidepressant.”

So the Scandinavians have also got it right with their “forest bathing”, where you are supposed to walk barefoot in the woods. I don’t think I’ll go that far. Barefoot on the beach is one thing, barefoot along forest paths is a different kettle of fish. 

Thinking about trees, here is something I found about the origin of the term "Tree hugger":

“The first tree huggers were 294 men and 69 women belonging to the Bishnois branch of Hinduism, who, in 1730, died while trying to protect the trees in their village from being turned into the raw material for building a palace. They literally clung to the trees, while being slaughtered by the foresters. But their action led to a royal decree prohibiting the cutting of trees in any Bishnoi village. And now those villages are virtual wooded oases amidst an otherwise desert landscape.

Not only that, the Bishnois inspired the Chipko movement (chipko means “to cling” in Hindi) that started in the 1970s, when a group of peasant women in the Himalayan hills of northern India threw their arms around trees designated to be cut down. Within a few years, this tactic, also known as tree satyagraha, had spread across India, ultimately forcing reforms in forestry and a moratorium on tree felling in Himalayan regions.”

Nothing new under the sun.

Life goes on. Stay safe and well, everyone!