Introduction

Leixlip Main Street is too narrow to accommodate large mature trees such as found in many other  towns and villages. This gives the erroneous impression that Leixlip is devoid of mature trees. Nothing could be further from the truth; in fact Leixlip has a rich tree heritage, some old and magnificent, some native, and some foreign and exotic. To illustrate and promote Leixlip’s tree heritage, Leixlip Tidy Town Association (LTTA) has developed a Tree Trail, a recognised method of generating interest in trees in local communities. The objective is to educate our community, particularly its younger members, on the vital role of trees in our daily lives. They sequester carbon thereby mitigating global warming, they contribute to biodiversity and they visually enhance the landscape. Initially, securing the necessary finance was an obstacle but an Intel Pride of Place award of €4,000 eased that problem. 

Planning the Tree Trail

A professional arborist was engaged to advise on planning the Trail and to oversee its development. The first task was to choose the route which was then marked on an enlarged Ordnance Survey map. The route was largely determined by four locations with a diversity of mature trees, namely the Church Grounds/Parish Centre, Wild Meadow, Squirrel Wood and Rye River Walk. Linking these were four other stages making for an 8 stage Trail in total. The Trail starts on Old Hill with a large Trail Head information panel (Picture 2) listing the 8 stages of the Trail together with a map of the Trail route The panel text is in both English and Irish.

Picture 3.  Some of the Tree Name Posts

Common, Irish and Latin Names of Trees and Families

The common (or English), Latin and Irish names of the 38 different tree species / types labelled are shown in Table 2. The Latin version is the definitive tree name. In a small number of cases the label refers to a line of trees, e.g. the line of Hornbeams on Ryevale Road and the line of Leyland Cypresses along Ryevale House perimeter fence. The number of trees of each species in the Trail is shown in Table 2. Nineteen species have just one member, 10 have two, 6 have 3, and three have 4 or more members. Also shown in Table 2 are the tree families and the locations on the Trail of the different tree species. The 38 species /types in the Trail represent 13 different tree families. As with species, most families have only one or two members but two families, Betulaceae and Rosaceae, are unusually abundant with 17 and 18 members each.    

TABLE 2 – COMMON NAME, LATIN NAME, IRISH NAME OF LEIXLIP TREE TRAIL TREES

Common Name	Latin Name	Irish Name	No. of this Species	Tree Family	No of this Family	Where Found
Monterey Cypress	Cupressus macrocarpa	Cufróg Monyerey	1	CUPPRESSACEAE	4	Old Hill
Common Beech	Fagus sylvatica	Feá	2	FAGACEAE	5	Old Hill, Wild Meadow
Horse Chestnut	Aesculus hippocastanum	Crann Cnó Capaill	5	HIPPOCASTANACEAE	5	Parish Centre, Wild Meadow, Squirrel Wood3
Silver Birch	Betula pendula	Beith Gheal	6	BETULACEAE	17	Parish Centre, Wild Meadow, Ryevale Road4
Cherry Plum	Prunus cerasifera ‘Nigra’	Crann Plumaí Sílíneacha	2	ROSACEAE	18	Parish Centre, Station Road,
Pissard’s Plum	Prunus cerasifera ‘Pissardii’2	Crann Plumaí Pissard	2	ROSACEAE		Parish Centre, Station Road,
Whitebeam	Sorbus aria	Fionncholl	2	ROSACEAE		Parish Centre, Station Road,
Sycamore	Acer pseudoplatanus	Seiceamóir	3	ACERACEAE	5	Church Grounds, Squirrel Wood, Rye River Walk
Lawson Cypress1	Chamaecyparis laws-oniana	Curfóg Lawson	1	CUPRESSACEAE		Church Grounds
Yew	Taxus baccata	Iúr	2	TAXACEAE	2	Church Grounds, Squirrel Wood
Small Leaved Lime	Tilia cordata	Teile Mhoinduilleach	3	TILLACEAE	3	Church Grounds, Wild Meadow Squirrel Wood
Field Maple	Acer campestre	Mailp	3	ACERACEAE		Wild Meadow, Rye River Walk
Common Alder	Alnus glutinosa	Fearnóg	1	BETULACEAE		Wild Meadow
Grey Alder	Alnus incana	Fearnóg Liath	1	BETULACEAE		Wild Meadow
Snowy Mespil	Amelanchier lamarckii	Úlláinséar	1	ROSCAEAE		Wild Meadow
Strawbrry Tree	Arbutus unedo	Caithne	1	ERICACEAE	1	Wild Meadow
River Birch	Betula nigra	Beith Abhann	1	BETULACEAE		Wild Meadow
Downy Birch	Betula pubescens	Beith Chlúmhach	2	BETULACEAE		Wild Meadow, Squirrel Wood
Himalayan Birch	Betula utilis	Beith Himiléach	1	BETULACEAE		Wild Meadow
Common Hornbeam	Carpinus betulus	Crann Sleamhain	2	BETULACEAE		Wild Meadow, Ryevale Road (line of them)
Claret / Raywood Ash	Fraxinus angustifolia ‘Raywood’	Fuinseog Chaol	1	OLEACEAE	5	Wild Meadow
Common Ash	Fraxinus excelsior	Fuinseog	4	OLEACEAE		Wild Meadow, Squirrel Wood, Rye River Walk
Holly	Ilex acquifolium	Cuileann	1	AQUILFOLIACEAE	1	Wild Meadow
Turkey Oak	Quercus cerris	Searbhdhair	1	FAGACEAE		Wild Meadow
Irish Oak	Quercus petraea	Dair Ghaelach	1	FAGACEAE		Wild Meadow
Pedunculate Oak	Quercus robur	Dair Ghallda	1	FAGACEAE		Wild Meadow
Mountain Ash or Rowan	Sorbus aucuparia	Caorthann	3	ROSCAEAE		Wild Meadow, Squirrel Wood, Ryevale Park
Blue Atlas Cedar	Cedrus atlantica ‘Glauca’	Cédar Atlais Gorm	1	PINACEAE	1	Squirrel Wood
Hawthorn	Crataegus monogyna	Sceach Gheal	3	ROSACEAE		Squirrel Wood, Rye River Walk
Leyland Cypress	x Cupressocyparis leylandii	Cufróg Leyland	2	CUPRESSACEAE		Squirrel Wood (line of them), Rye River Walk
Aspen	Populus tremula	Crann Creathach	1	SILICACEAE	4	Squirrel Wood
Common Elder	Sambucus nigra	Trom	3	BETULACEAE		Rye River Walk
Wild Cherry or Gean	Prunus avium	Crann Siliní Fiáin	2	ROSACEAE		Ryevale Park, Rye River Walk
Hazel	Corylus avellana	Coill	1	BETULACEAE		Rye River Walk
Blackthorn	Prunus spinosa	Draighean	2	ROSACEAE		Rye River Walk
Crack Willow	Salix fragilis	Crack Crann Saileach	1	SALICACEAE		Rye River Walk
Golden Weeping Willow	Salix x sepulcralis ‘Chrysocoma’	Saileach Shilte	1	SALICACEAE		Rye River Walk
Goat Willow	Salix caprea	Sailchearnach	1	SALICACEAE		Rye River Walk
			71		71

¹ or Port Orford Cedar

    ² ‘Atropurpurea’

   ³  also Rye River Walk

   ⁴  also Squirrel Wood and Ryevale Park 

PROFILE OF TREE SPECIES ON LEIXLIP TREE TRAIL – CAN BE VIEWED ON LAPTOP/DESKTOP OR DOWNLOADED ON A MOBILE PHONE

Logos

A new logo was designed especially for the Tree Trail (Picture 4). It is on all the tree name posts and the associated guide posts. This is to differentiate the Tree Trail posts from other trail or guide posts which may be at the same locations. Also, the LTTA logo was modified especially for the Tree Trail (Picture 5). Both logos are on the Trail Head panel and on all the posts. The Trail Head panel also has the Intel and Kildare Co. Council logos.

Did you know?

• Trees add to the beauty of the landscape, not only in the countryside but also in our towns and villages. They contribute to the sequestration of carbon, aid in reducing flooding, remove dust and harmful particles from the air we breathe, enhance biodiversity.
• There are over 13,000 placenames in Ireland that derive in some way from trees, forests or wood.
• There is a growing trend by many health professionals to prescribe a walk in a wood or park for people suffering from mental health problems.
• It is estimated that in 2500 BC the extent of forest cover in Ireland was 80% of the land area. By 1900 less than 1% of our native woodlands remained. The proportion of woodland has greatly increased since then but Ireland still has one of the lowest woodland covers in Europe at ca. 11% compared to a European average of over 40%.
• Oak has been identified at numerous Irish prehistoric sites, especially in Crannógs. Crannógs were artificial islands, built in lakes or marshes which provided protection for the people who lived there.
• There were specific Brehon laws dealing with trees. Under these laws, certain trees and shrubs were protected because of their importance to the community. Penalties were imposed for any unlawful damage such as branch-cutting, de-barking or base-cutting.