Big old horse chestnut tree (Aesculus hippocastanum). I don’t usually stop and look at this tree through a lens, but today it drew my eye, probably because of the bright blue sky behind it, which I was itching to include in a shot.

I walk by this tree almost every day, in all weathers and I’ve seen it in various stages; from dense foliage to complete undress, weighed down by conkers in between. There’s still a few leaves hanging on to life, but they’ll soon be gone, making way for a dark silhouette against a wintry skyline, or snow-covered branches while the tree lies dormant.

After the horse chestnut’s leaves have fallen, a distinctive horseshoe shaped scar is left on twigs and branches, together with seven ‘nail’ marks – presumably where the ‘horse’ part of the tree’s name came from. The glossy conkers that emerge from their spiky green shells resemble chestnuts; hence the ‘horse chestnut’.

Exif Data
Focal Length: 4.1mm; Exposure Time: 1/160 sec; Flash: Off;
F-Number: F/4; ISO: 80; Metering Mode: Matrix;