Gabriel Hemery's Blog: Gabriel Hemery, page 29

Talking resilient woods on BBC Radio

I was interviewed recently about work I am helping lead on the British Woodlands Survey with the Sylva Foundation— this year exploring adaptation to environmental change. The piece was featured this morning BBC Radio 4 Farming Today.

Gabriel Hemery being interviewed for BBC Radio 4 Farming Today, 11 September 2015

I had arranged to meet BBC journalist Ruth Sanderson at the University of Oxford’s Wytham Woods, perhaps one of the most studied woodlands in the UK, along with its Conservator Nigel Fisher. It was an ideal location to discuss environmental change and how woodland owners can respond, especially given the breadth of research underway in the woodland. I have supervised the work of two Oxford graduates in Wytham Woods; the first studied cord-forming fungi, and the current student is researching ash dieback.

BBC Radio 4 Farming Today

You can listen to the programme again here.

If you own or manage a woodland, or work as a professional in the forestry sector, the Sylva Foundation and its partners are keen to hear your views about environmental change. Please do try to find the time (15-20 minutes) to complete the survey.

Please take the survey

Tagged: BBC, climate change, forestry, media, radio, resilience, science, woodlands

Environmental change: awareness, actions, aspirations

Environmental change is impacting Britain’s trees and forests with increasing frequency and severity, caused by human influences and/or natural ecological processes.

Somerset owner William Theed replanted with different conifer species when Japanese larch in his woodland was the first in the UK attacked by Phytophthora ramorum. Photo Gabriel Hemery.

An important national survey about environmental change is seeking to explore awareness, actions and aspirations among all those who care for trees. It is open until 15th September and I encourage all those with a deep interest or professional connection with trees and forestry to take part.

If you can spare about 20 minutes you will be guided through a set of questions tailored to your role (namely woodland owner, professional forester or arboriculturist, tree nursery owner etc.). These cover the following broad themes:

What do you think about environmental change?
Have you been affected by environmental change?
What are you doing about making our trees and forests more resilient to environmental change?

Survey co-ordinators the Sylva Foundation report that over 1000 responses have been received to date (see Twitter), which is impressive, but more responses will mean more powerful science and better informed policies. This is an opportunity for many new voices to be heard on a very important subject.

Please take the survey

More about the British Woodlands Survey 2015

The national survey is aiming is to help understand progress in awareness and actions in adapting to environmental change among woodland owners and managers (including agents), tree nursery businesses, and forestry professionals.

The information gathered will be used by organisations, policy makers and researchers to help improve the resilience of the nation’s forests. The results will inform the government’s National Adaptation Programme.

The British Woodlands Survey 2015 on Resilience is supported by a very wide number of organisations, with funding provided by the Forestry Commission and the Woodland Trust. It is hosted and co-ordinated by the Sylva Foundation.

The survey is live from July 31st to September 15th 2015.

Take the survey: www.sylva.org.uk/bws

Tagged: arboriculture, climate change, environment, forestry, pests, policy, research, trees

Auction of Special Edition Prints from The New Sylva

The drawings in The New Sylva were created by internationally-renowned artist Sarah Simblet while she was artist-in-residence for environmental charity the Sylva Foundation. Now a selection of 80 special edition prints are being auctioned to raise money for its charitable activities.

Auction page on Sylva Foundation website

About the Special Edition Prints

Artist Sarah Simblet rarely sells her work as prints. This represents a unique investment and a special opportunity for fans of her stunning drawings. Each print will be signed by Sarah Simblet, and accompanied by an attractive Certificate of Authenticity, signed by both authors of The New Sylva.

Printing has been calibrated by the artist to ensure the finest quality reproduction.
Each print will be signed by the artist Sarah Simblet.
Each print is accompanied by a Certificate of Authenticity, signed by both authors of The New Sylva.
A unique embossing seal is applied on both the print and certificate, the latter including a red foil backing. The seal celebrates the 350th anniversary of John Evelyn’s Sylva of 1664. It reads: The New Sylva // 1664~2014 // Special Edition Print.
Only one copy of each print will be sold with its accompanying certificate of authenticity, which includes the drawing title and page number from The New Sylva.

Technical information:

The giclee prints have been produced by a specialist fine art printmaker on 330 gsm Galerie Prestige Gold Cotton paper with light-fast inks. There are no optical brighteners employed in the production of this paper, giving longevity and crisp image stability and detail, and it is typically used for gallery and museum-quality prints.
The Certificate of Authenticity adopts the same font and colours used in text of The New Sylva book. It measures A4 in size, and has been produced by the same professional printermaker.
The 80 prints range in size. The size of this specific listing is provided at the top of the description.
The print and certificate will be supplied unmounted and rolled in a large diameter tube, allowing the winning bidder to mount and frame to suit the final placement of the artwork.

Visit the auction page on the Sylva Foundation website

Special edition prints from The New Sylva to be auctioned

Some 80 special edition prints from The New Sylva are to be auctioned to raise money for charity.

The Sylva Foundation – the charity that supported the production of the book by appointing Sarah Simblet as its artist-in-residence – will be auctioning the prints via an online auction site.

The fine art Giclée prints will be selected from the 200 original drawings made especially for the book, and are sure to include those that readers have told us are among their favourites. Each print will be a single edition – signed by Sarah Simblet – accompanied by a Certificate of Authenticity signed by both book authors.

We wanted to inform our dedicated readers first. This is a unique opportunity to own a high quality print of Sarah Simblet’s work.

If you are interested in being among the first to know when the auction goes live, you can add your email to a list being compiled by the Sylva Foundation. Simply use the form below.

All proceeds for the auction will go towards the charitable work of the Sylva Foundation

Special limited prints from The New Sylva to be auctioned

Some 80 special limited prints from The New Sylva are to be auctioned to raise money for charity.

The Sylva Foundation – the charity that supported the production of the book by appointing Sarah Simblet as its artist-in-residence – will be auctioning the prints via an online auction site.

The fine art Giclée prints will be selected from the 200 original drawings made especially for the book, and are sure to include those that readers have told us are among their favourites. Each print will be a single edition accompanied by a Certificate of Authenticity signed by both authors.

We wanted to inform our dedicated readers first. This is a unique opportunity to own a high quality print of Sarah Simblet’s work.

If you are interested in being among the first to know when the auction goes live, you can add your email to a list being compiled by the Sylva Foundation. Simply use the form below.

All proceeds for the auction will go towards the charitable work of the Sylva Foundation

Author talk at Royal Botanic Gardens Kew

Authors Gabriel Hemery and Sarah Simblet are delighted to announce that they will be giving a public talk about The New Sylva at Royal Botanic Gardens Kew on 29th January.

We will talk about the making of The New Sylva and the importance of trees to society and the environment.

Books will be available to purchase, signed by the authors.

The New Sylva






29 January 2015, 7pm to 8.15pm







Venue:  Jodrell Lecture Theatre
Price:   £5 (£4 Friends of Kew)

To book a ticket email: adulted@kew.org or phone 020 8332 5626.

Read more on the Kew Gardens website

Cream of the crop

” . . . any gardener or naturalist could only be delighted to be given The New Sylva: A Discourse of Forest & Orchard Trees for the 21st Century by Gabriel Hemery and Sarah Simblet (Bloomsbury, £50), renovating John Evelyn’s classic, Sylva, of 1664. Beautifully illustrated with black-and-white pen-and-ink drawings by Simblet, it sets out “to revitalise our wood culture: to plant a tree; to marvel at the beauty and richness of a woodland…”.  The New Sylva looks to the future for each species — and it’s a delight on every page.”

David Sexton, London Evening Standard

11th December 2014

Review in Irish Forestry

“This is a magnificent book which will appeal not only to anybody interested in trees, but also those who appreciate beautiful books. Highly recommended.”

Kevin Hutchinson, Irish Forestry (Society of Irish Foresters)

December 2014

Featured in Books of the Year list by Mail on Sunday

The New Sylva features in Top Books of the Year by the Mail on Sunday.

Books of the Year 2014 – Mail on Sunday – 30th November 2014. Photo: Mail on Sunday.

The New Sylva – A Discourse of Forest and Orchard Trees for the 21st Century by Gabriel Hemery and Sarah Simblet (Bloomsbury). An unparalleled understanding of our trees, updating John Evelyn’s 17th-century Sylva, the first comprehensive study.

Mail on Sunday, 30th November 2014

Book features in The Washington Post

[The] “New Sylva” bespeaks a cultural relationship with the tree that may be missing in other societies and has to do with the way trees are permitted to grow old in Britain — as in centuries old — and the way they inhabit a seamless terrain between close-set garden, park and countryside.

Adrian Higgins

The Washington Post