Geograph - photograph every grid square

This is a closer view of the two great oaks seen in Link

In medieval times, before the production of tall trees for naval purposes became a national priority, these oaks were pollarded - lopped at frequent intervals, at a level which stunted their growth. This was common practice in countryside managed for deer, and is evidence of the land use here, before the Park was enclosed in the mid-17th century. The conventional explanation is that pollarding yielded a regular crop of poles, for house-building and the like - but from my own observation I can say that whenever a limb is lopped off an oak, deer will move in to consume any greenstuff within reach. So I wonder whether medieval pollarding was intended to supplement the food available to deer, perhaps by taking a crop annually, as in the management of willows in osier beds.

Richmond Park is a National Nature Reserve.