2018 tree following 7: Surviving the drought

Plenty of green leaves on the linden next to the Wharf in Cardiff Bay, despite the drought

The drought has broken in Cardiff now. We have had plenty of welcome rain over the last week, following a couple of months of hot and dry weather. The small-leaved linden (a cultivar of Tilia cordata) next to the Wharf in Cardiff Bay is looking surprisingly green and healthy.

My monthly tree-following visit had to take a bit of a detour this time, as the developers of the apartments/flats alongside the Wharf have blocked off the footpath during construction work. I hope this will eventually open up again to allow a complete circuit of the old Bute East Dock, but it’s not certain, as part of the land is privately owned. For now I had to walk along Schooner Way to regain my route.

Access along the Wharf is limited at the moment

Approaching the linden from the south-east

One or two leaves have turned yellow

The previously-noted piece of string is still tied loosely around a branch…

…a closer look at a perfect heart-shaped yellow leaf

The ripening linden seeds are still borne high above the bracts

The lime nail galls or bugle galls of the mite Eriophyes tiliae are still growing on the leaves

The linden trunk

There was one dead branch…

…these leaf buds will not see next spring…

…but the damage was physical, not cause by the drought

Looking back at the linden from the west, with the Wharf beyond

That seems to be it for another month. See my other linden posts here.

And you can find everyone else’s tree-following posts this month here.