Photos from walk on Thursday 22nd September from Gt Coxwell to Longcot

We started outside Great Coxwell Barn

In 2014 a scientific method called dendrochronology (a dating method that uses the growth rings of long-lived trees as a calendar), was used to narrow down when the barn was actually built.

Using a cherry picker for access, 16mm diameter core samples were drilled from ten of the timbers supporting the vast roof. They were then taken away for analysis and dating.

The analysis showed that the wood used for the roof timbers was felled from 1253 onwards. One of the samples still had the bark edge preserved making it possible to say this had been felled in the winter of 1291/92. Samples from two other timbers in the barn also came from the same parent tree.

We know it was common practice at the time to build timber frame structures with green or unseasoned timber, usually within 12 months of felling.

So to the question “How old is the barn?” we can now answer that it’s most likely that the barn was under construction in 1292 or shortly after, making it about 723 years old.

Near Ashen Copse Farm

From Tithe Farm

D’Arcy Dalton Way

Back of Longcot

Fortunately this was behind us, and we didn’t need to decide which way to choose.

After lunch

And now a few autumn fruits, mainly in the hedgerows by the path up to Little Coxwell.

Acorn and oak leaf

Raw blackberries are 88% water, 10% carbohydrates, 1% protein, and 0.5% fat

The “haws” or fruits of the common hawthorn, C. monogyna, are edible. In the United Kingdom, they are sometimes used to make a jelly or homemade wine.