At a polling station in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, voters queued in their hundreds, many of them seeking shelter from the sun under palm trees.

BBC: US election: Tight race for Obama and Romney

They do brunch as well as all types of wursts and schnitzle, but if you do not care about American football or baseball, sit in the second courtyard under the shade trees and away from the large flat screen TVs.

BBC: H Street heats up

From the street, as he approached under the dark, dripping trees, his house looked impressive enough.

NEWYORKER: Great Experiment

Mr Barter said the trees were under threat from the spread of the chestnut leaf mining moth and chestnut bleeding canker.

BBC: Conker match world record smashed at RHS Wisley

There she crouches under a dark bank, amid the roots of trees, as her companions from the farm come searching for her.

NEWYORKER: Family Farm

" Indeed, Beethoven's letters are filled with declarations of the importance of nature in his life, such as one from 1810: "How delighted I will be to ramble for awhile through the bushes, woods, under trees, through grass, and around rocks.

NPR: Beethoven's Symphony No. 6 in F Major, Op. 68