I was halfway home when Storm Dudley barged me off the path, and wouldn’t let me back on again. Eyes streaming with the screaming wind, I staggered on until reaching the woods. The moment I stepped into the thicket of young willows, the air calmed. When I was 20 yards in, the storm was just a rustling rumour in the branches.

Eight million mature trees have already been uprooted by wind this winter, and no doubt Storms Dudley and Eunice will fell many more, but such a trail of arboreal destruction only happens because so many of our trees are isolated, growing alone or in thin belts.