A fully revised edition of London’s Street Trees was published in April 2020
(It’s bigger and even better!)
My first book, ‘London’s Street Trees: A Field Guide to the Urban Forest’ was published in 2017.
208 pages of street tree descriptions, anecdotes and history, and of course, hundreds of photos! It’s a journey through the urban forest: the astonishing multiplicity of trees lining the capital’s streets, from 19th-century Plane trees on the Embankment painted by Monet to Giant Redwoods in Edgware and a Magnolia in front of the Cheesegrater. You’ll learn why there are Australian Bottlebrush trees in a street in Pimlico, and where are the finest avenues of cherry trees in south London, and see the ‘world city’ of London in an entirely new way.
I’m thrilled too that Sadiq Khan, the Mayor of London, has written the Foreword.
You can order from all the usual places plus the Natural History Book Service if you prefer small enterprises. I have a few signed copies for sale too, use the button below to order.
If you would like to place a trade order, you’ll need to speak to the publisher, Safe Haven Books.
“For someone like me who’s not a natural naturalist, the book reveals a previously unconsidered world situated just outside the front door, or at most only a bus ride away.”
Ian Jack, The Guardian
My second book, London is a Forest was published in May 2019, and I have signed copies available too.
Oh, and the cover shot? London Planes on Kennington Road of course!
23 replies on “London’s Street Trees: A Field Guide to the Urban Forest”
[…] and so would our wildlife. I was very excited to find that, in Paul Wood’s new book ‘London’s Street Trees: A Field Guide to the Urban Forest‘, there are a number of walks to follow. One of them is in Archway, just a mile or so down […]
[…] trees and many more feature in my newly published book, London’s Street Trees and I shall be talking about the urban forest at Stanfords Map and Travel Bookshop in Covent Garden […]
I just got this book. Excellent! I’m putting more trees into my road and this is the prefect guide (to a total novice).
Great to hear it may have a practical application – please do let me know what you plant!
[…] the launch of my book, London’s Street Trees, earlier this week, I have been asked about associated walks, talks and other events I’m […]
What a great book! Tried to subscribe to the blog but it keeps telling me it’s an invalid email (even though I have a wordpress account and my email is valid!)
Thanks Leticia! I don’t know why WordPress says your email address is invalid, but I hope you will receive notifications of future posts.
[…] Some useful resources that help me identify trees: * Usborne Spotter’s Guide to Trees (this was a gift to my son years ago, but it’s a great little guide) * The OPAL Tree Health Survey Tree Guide * Woodland Trust guide to British Trees * The Plant List * Pl@ntNet app – always a good starting point even if it doesn’t always identify correctly, you can get some good clues from the suggestions. This app has already come a long way since it was first launched as it has a lot more data now. Here’s a review and explanation on how it works. * Wikipedia’s list of tree genera from which I did this simple diagram with the most common trees I have found. * London’s Street Trees A Field Guide to the Urban Forest by Paul Wood […]
[…] where it seems to have survived the last ice age) and is a popular street tree – in ‘London’s Street Trees‘ Paul Wood points out that it can be found in Bermondsey, Haggerston, Vauxhall and Holloway, […]
[…] expert and would love to know more. So who better than Paul Wood, author of a fantastic book on London’s Street Trees to show me the amazing diversity of species right on our doorstep. I’d go on any of Paul’s […]
[…] required) using TiCL App during the days of The Urban Tree Festival will win a signed copy of Paul Wood’s book London’s Street Trees. (In the event of a tie, the recipient will be chosen at random from the list of people who checked […]
[…] Paul Wood, aka @TheStreetTree, and the author of ‘London’s Street Trees: a Field Guide to the Urban Forest’, one of the Guardian’s 2017 Nature Books of the Year. I’ve always been interested in trees, […]
[…] They look a little like cherry trees, but, as Paul Wood points out in his wonderful book ‘London’s Street Trees‘ the bark and leaves are different – the bark of the shadbush is smooth grey with a […]
What trees do you recommend for a street in Tooting? Criteria I’ve come up with so far: not too big or invasive, pollution resistant, attractive bark and foliage, acceptable to the Council
Thanks
Hi Rowena, there’s so many to choose from! Wild Service, Hornbeam and Field Maple would be good native choices, Clerodendron, Tetradium and Gymnocladus would be very interesting, more unusual species!
[…] London’s Street Trees […]
[…] Wood, un spécialiste de la forêt urbaine et auteur du blog The Street Tree. Son guide de terrain, London’s Street Trees, est très bien fait, tout comme sa carte papier, ainsi que son livre London is a Forest. Grâce à […]
[…] London’s Street Trees: A Field Guide to the Urban Forest (Paul Wood) […]
[…] London’s Street Trees: A Field Guide to the Urban Forestby Paul Wood […]
[…] chalky soil, it seems happy enough in London clay to be a popular street tree. In his book ‘London’s Street Trees‘, Paul Wood mentions a favourite Field Maple on Hornsey Road in North […]
I live now in a carehome in Mile End, in lockdown. The great joy in my life is that my window looks across Eric Street at an unfamilar cherry tree, and l would love to know its species.
There are several very small dark cherries still in the branches, even after the lanceolate leaves have nearly all fallen. My daughter managed to bring me some fallen twigs yesterday, with the cherries still on them: there was a very thin layer of flesh around the stone, but with a distinct cherry taste!
Can anybody give me any idea of the variety of street cherry tree this is? I fear l may not live until next spring, to see it in flower ☹️
Cath
I’m afraid I have no idea, all the cherries I can think of will have lost their fruit by now, so I wonder if someone else reading this might have any ideas.
[…] Some useful resources that help me identify trees: * Usborne Spotter’s Guide to Trees (this was a gift to my son years ago, but it’s a great little guide) * The OPAL Tree Health Survey Tree Guide * Woodland Trust guide to British Trees * The Plant List * Pl@ntNet app – always a good starting point even if it doesn’t always identify correctly, you can get some good clues from the suggestions. This app has already come a long way since it was first launched as it has a lot more data now. Here’s a review and explanation on how it works. * Wikipedia’s list of tree genera from which I did this simple diagram with the most common trees I have found (note I haven’t even started on the conifers, concentrating on broad leaved trees for now). * London’s Street Trees A Field Guide to the Urban Forest by Paul Wood […]