urban-forestry.com 33
ingsdown and Walmer Beach is a straight
stretch of flint shingle beach running
north-south along the coast of Kent
(UK). The shingle is bounded to one side by the
English Channel, one of the busiest shipping
lanes in the world, and on the other by a well-
used esplanade, an access road and housing
(Kingsdown). The beach is a little piece of wilder-
ness—a liminal space between town and sea.
What is striking about this section of beach is the
scatter of curious dark cushion-shaped growths
hugging the shingle, often several metres (9.8 feet)
high and up to ten metres (32.8 feet) across (Photo
1). On close examination these are holm oaks
(Quercus ilex) moulded into this compact and aero-
dynamic growth form by their location on the edge
of the sea, at the mercy of harsh salt-laden winds.
Usually an elegant tree, the Walmer holm oaks have
adopted a life-form that has created a scene from
science fiction, with the upper beach resembling
a landing ground for arborescent flying saucers!
This native tree of the Mediterranean and Iberia
is now widely naturalised throughout France and
Britain; it has adapted to a range of habitats where
its ability to withstand dry conditions gives it an
advantage. At Walmer it has colonised a space
that is generally inhospitable to other tree species,
although a very few individuals struggle on, none
reaching the size of the holms. It is one of several
invasive species of English shingle flora, mostly
ground flora, able to cope with the extremes of
exposure, poor soils, and low moisture availability.
At Walmer and Kingsdown the source of many of
these plants is as domestic garden escapees like the
dramatic red valerian (Centranthus ruber) (Photo
2) and red-hot poker (Kniphofia sp.) Valerian >>
K
Photo 2: Valerian (Centranthus ruber) dominates the shingle in the
foreground, with holm oak in distance. Photo by Peter Vujakovic
