Tree of the day: Aesculus indica, Indian horsechestnut, Thomson South
Aesculus indica is a species of deciduous broadleaf flowering plants (in the Sapindaceae or Soapberry family), native to the Himalayan lowlands.
Aesculus indica is a species of deciduous broadleaf flowering plants (in the Sapindaceae or Soapberry family), native to the Himalayan lowlands. It grows to be a medium-sized tree with a dense canopy, and beautiful upright clusters ("candles") of white flowers that bloom in late spring and early summer. The flowers have yellow centres until they have been pollinated, at which point they turn pink, as a signal to pollinating insects, which avoid the pink ones. The tree thrives in cool mountain climates and is often planted along roadsides, in parks, and near temples for shade and ornamental beauty. Its leaves are narrow compared with Aesculus hippocastanum leaves, grow in groups of seven from a central point (technically seven leaflets comprising one leaf), and turn golden yellow in autumn. Its fruit are round with slightly rough skin, and contain glossy brown seeds, which can be ground to flour and used in making chapatis.
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This website is a virtual arboretum, created for interest, education and beauty. It exhibits some of the thousands of trees, of both native and exotic species, that grow in Whiteknights Park, the main campus of the University of Reading. Many of them have been planted since the university arrived in 1947, but some have been here since the 19th century or earlier, when Whiteknights was the gardens and parkland of large houses. Nine of the trees are listed as the British Isles champions of their species in The Tree Register.
Please send any comments about this website to whiteknights-trees@reading.ac.uk.
The previous version of this website is here.
Acknowledgements
Acknowledgements
I would like to thank: Rupert Taylor, Owen Johnson, Alastair Culham, Jonathan Mitchley, Marcus Wheeler, Benoît Vannière, Miguel Teixeira and Claire Hawkins for tree identifications; Brian Hunt and Trevor Smith for testing routes and contributing text; Dylan Parkes, Martin Watts, Emilija Rudzinskaite, Brian and Trevor for collaboration on the centenary project; Dan Hodson for useful code examples; Studio Lift for website style; Brian, Trevor and Nathanaël van Twillert for comments and suggestions on website user experience; Benoît, Marcus, Steve George, Brian, Trevor, the Friends of the University of Reading, and other friends for their encouragement during the development of the website; the University and its grounds staff for maintaining Whiteknights Park.