Native Black Poplars

During 2025, in my volunteer role as resident artist with Herefordshire Wildlife Trust, I'm making portraits of native black poplars around the county, from sapling to ancient. It intrigues me that some of our county specimens are in public places, obvious and yet mostly unnoticed. I hope my portraits capture something of the individuality and beauty of each tree, and encourage people to look out for them. The drawings will go on show in the Jubilee Building at Queenswood in October 2026 with accompanying events including a drawing workshop.

These magnificent, gnarly trees, celebrated in John Constable's paintings, were once common on floodplains and wet areas. However, drainage of the land for agriculture has meant they have slowly disappeared from the landscape. A recent survey estimated there are 7000 black poplars in England, Wales and Ireland, of which only 600 are female and vital to the survival of the species. Herefordshire Wildlife Trust is actively working to save our native black poplars, find out how you can help here.