Cross contamination from woodchip

[smiles]

Does anyone know of any issues from contaminated woodchip,fungi etc.. being transferred to woodland ?

 

I've got a very good situation where I can drop woodchip on some local community land and it is spread on the footpaths to keep the mud down - a couple of local busybodies are creating a bit of a fuss for deep political reasons within the village and citing that "contaminated woodchip" could harm the woodland (mainly chestnut coppice)

 

I'm aware of the leachate being an issue for watercourses,but this is not an issue for us.

 

Cheers

Steve

[woodworm]

Sounds like they are on about recycled woodchip and haven't a bl@@dy clue what they are on about.

Tell them it's virgin chip made from actual trees, yes real ones like the ones in their gardens.

[timbernut]

Just avoid giving chip from diseased / dying trees you've chipped and just from healthy trees

[smiles]

Yeah - seems to be the way to go - I just wondered if there was any solid basis for their "concerns" !

 

Thanks

Steve

[Thesnarlingbadger]

Yeah - seems to be the way to go - I just wondered if there was any solid basis for their "concerns" !

 

 

 

Thanks

 

Steve

 

 

They may just be worried because of the fuss ash dieback has caused and worried something similar may happen.

I would avoid dumping anything there that did have a fungus (that you know of) as it can spread of it is quite an evasive type like honey etc

[Alinicoll]

I would think that you want to be careful with non native or infectious diseases e.g. Chalara, bleeding canker etc and anything specific to (sweet?) chestnut.

 

Things like honey fungus are probably less of a concern. A woodland will already have honey fungus, its part of the ecosystem. Adding wood chip will increase the amount of dead wood which saprotrophs can then colonise.

 

Honey fungus is not good at competing with other sapotrophic fungi. Even if you did put wood chip with honey fungus down it wouldn't just run riot.

[Shane]

Just tell them it'll all look nice for when the migrant processing centre is built nearby.

 

There are some trees, walnut springs to mind, whose chippings are said to be bad for surrounding growth. Also some may claim that the toxic elements of laburnum or laurel are 'bad'.

 

We take all our chippings to a registered recycling yard (where they are regularly tested by the environment agency) and I've not heard of any issues - there is no list of 'banned' species.

 

Ask these 'Ferring-like' residents what they expect?