Country diary: venerable beech hosts a swarm of microscopic life

Mini-ponds have formed in the surface roots of an ancient tree and provide an environment for minute organisms to thriveThe beech that stands at the end of the stepping stones across Waskerley beck is an elephantine presence, dwarfing surrounding trees. The scarred grey bark of its bole has the colour and texture of pachyderm skin. Its moss-covered surface roots seem to be melting into the earth under the massive burden they support. Over decades they have grown and coalesced, creating hollows b