Holding back the years.........

[David Humphries]

Part of this weeks programme over at Burnham (whilst working on the pollards) was working with the ATF and a production crew to record some footage that will eventually be used in training sessions for veteran tree management here and across europe.

 

 

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[David Humphries]

The team were led by Helen Read (CoL ecologist/ATF) & Jezz Young (CoL/pollard maestro) in the techniques of how, why & where to cut the old tress, which were on their second phased reductions.

 

 

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[treeseer]

Good to see most of the cuts to nodes, and none shredded, given that the objective is more tree health than beastie habitat. Having been often on the other end I know it's much easier to critique than to do the cutting, but impossible to critique intelligently without seeing the "before"s and knowing the objectives.

 

So no comment on the severity and the big horizontal cuts (knowing the tree does not always give great choices) until seeing that AA paper, which will have the specs yes? Finally time to subscribe to that rag--when does that issue come out?

Edited February 9, 2013 by treeseer

[David Humphries]

Big cuts were internodal Guy.

The spec being to leave stubs of upto 500mm after the last branchlet.

 

 

The paper is in the next issue of the journal, which I imagine will be out around March/April

 

 

 

 

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[Gary Prentice]

Something a little different today.

 

This old pollard was a little too delicate to take a lot of stomping around in, so we strung a zip line through the adjacent higher oak then through the canopy of the pollard on to the base of another anchor oak.

Climber tip anchored on to the higher adjacent oak then zipped down in to the pollard keeping most of his weight on the zip line & the adjacent higher oak.

 

The surrounding canopy was halo'd to give the target pollard more space/light.

 

 

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David, out of interest, what rope did you use for the zip line?

[David Humphries]

David, out of interest, what rope did you use for the zip line?

 

 

Teufelberger Patron Tree Access Rope

 

 

 

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[Arob]

Great thread and pics as ever David, you really seem to make full use of your opportunities. (.....whatever your taste in music....!)

 

Do you know whether the training film will be made publicly available - i'm guessing not as someone somewhere will have to cover the cost of making it?

 

Just this week read an interesting if all too brief paper by Helen Read on pollarding, you mention the forthcoming journal article which relates to pollarded Beech - do you know if anyone is working on lapsed pollarding in general? We seem to have a fashion hangover with quite a number of lapsed urban pollards so it'd be a worthwhile subject - or perhaps it's been covered and i've just not read around enough?

 

....time to go and add bolling to my dictionary....every day's a school day!

[David Humphries]

Great thread and pics as ever David, you really seem to make full use of your opportunities. (.....whatever your taste in music....!)

 

Do you know whether the training film will be made publicly available - i'm guessing not as someone somewhere will have to cover the cost of making it?

 

Just this week read an interesting if all too brief paper by Helen Read on pollarding, you mention the forthcoming journal article which relates to pollarded Beech - do you know if anyone is working on lapsed pollarding in general? We seem to have a fashion hangover with quite a number of lapsed urban pollards so it'd be a worthwhile subject - or perhaps it's been covered and i've just not read around enough?

 

....time to go and add bolling to my dictionary....every day's a school day!

 

Cheers Arob

 

We are relatively lucky with our opportunities but I do push for them at the same time and seek to open doors where there is a chink of light

 

Helen has said she will do a brief piece for this or another related thread regarding the training. My understanding is that it will be available on the net at some point.

 

Hopefully will get to see some of that footage soon.

 

The session has focused me and the team to look into going down the helmet cam route.

 

 

Not entirely sure what your asking regarding working on lapsed pollards?

Do you mean here in the UK or further afield?

 

 

 

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[Gary Prentice]

Teufelberger Patron Tree Access Rope

 

 

 

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11mm?

[David Humphries]

11mm?

 

Yes 11mm.

we have 2 lines for SRT.

1 is 60m & the other I think is 80m

 

On that particular job it may have been a beter option to have had a (tensioned) top line anchored at the top of 2 adjacent trees with a floating work anchor running on that.

Rather than the set up we used of running from the top of one (through the pollard canopy) to the base of the other.

 

 

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